Plaid IPO: What You Need to Know

The last decade has seen many financial tech startups achieving remarkable growth in a matter of years. For that reason, many people are interested in fintech IPOs.

One of the common names in the fintech industry is Plaid, which offers a unique approach to financial account management.

If you’re interested in learning more about the Plaid IPO, its financial performance, and funding rounds, this guide will provide you with all the necessary information. So without further ado, let’s dive right in!

About Plaid

Plaid is a private financial tech company that provides advanced technology to facilitate communication between credit card providers and users.

The company, headquartered in San Francisco, California, was established in May 2013 by the company’s current CEO, Zach Perret, along with William Hockey.

Currently, the company has around 1,200 employees and operates in various countries, including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Netherlands, France, and Spain.

In 2020, Visa planned to acquire Plaid for a merger deal estimated at around $5.2 billion. However, the deal was blocked by the U.S. Department of Justice due to concerns over monopoly and competition elimination.

How Does Plaid Make Money?

Plaid makes money through a balanced mix of business models. However, the company’s most common method for earning revenue is by providing other businesses with one-time products, such as application programming and software solutions, in exchange for a large fee.

Plaid also makes money by charging customers a minimal fee for repeated services, such as checking balances.

Another method for making revenue that Plaid uses is subscription-based models, in which some of the company's products charge a monthly fee for the services they provide.

Plaid Funding Rounds and Top Investors

The unique model of Plaid has helped growth considerably over the years and made it a lucrative choice for investors and capital funds.

As of 2023, the company has raised more than $734.3 million throughout seven funding rounds.

Here’s a quick breakdown of them to give you a better look at Plaid’s financial situation:

• On September 19, 2013, Plaid completed its first funding round (Seed Round - Plaid), which raised around $2.8 million from 5 investors, led by Spark Capital, Google Ventures, New Enterprise Associates, and others.
• On November 15, 2014, an early-stage venture under the name of “Series A - Plaid” raised around $12.5 million from 4 investors, including Spark Capital, New Enterprise Associates, Homebrew, and Felicis.
• On June 19, 2016, another early-stage venture under the name of “Series B - Plaid” raised $44 million. The funding round was led by Goldman Sachs Investment Partners but included a total of 8 investors, including new investors like American Express Ventures, BoxGroup, and Citi Ventures.
• On December 11, 2018, Plaid completed its first last-stage funding round under the name of “Series C - Plaid”, raising around $250 million from various investors, led by Kleiner Perkins and Index Ventures, but also included various old investors.
• On December 29, 2020, Plaid completed its largest late-stage funding round to date under the name of “Series D - Plaid”, raising $425 million. The round included 9 investors, led by Altimeter Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Ribbit Capital, Thrive Capital, and others.
• On August 17, 2021, Plaid completed another last-stage funding round under the name of “Series D - Plaid”. The round raised an undisclosed amount of money from various investors, led by American Express Ventures, JP Morgan Chase, and Bedrock Capital.
• On August 25, 2021, Plaid completed its last late-stage venture to date. However, the details about the investors as well as the money raised, are still undisclosed.

Plaid IPO Outlook

According to a recent report by CNBC, Plaid was valued at $13.4 billion in 2022. With such remarkable growth in 9 years, it’s natural that Plaid’s next move would be an initial public offering.

In fact, several reports came out in early 2022 speculating that the company was planning to go public by the end of the year. However, 2022 passed without any announcements of a Plaid IPO.

In June 2022, Plaid’s CEO talked about the company’s stance on an IPO, saying that the plan of going public and setting a timeframe for an IPO isn’t something the company is thinking of at the moment.

With that being said, Zach Perret didn’t completely shut off the door, as he said that he still intends to go public when the market conditions improve. Crunchbase included Plaid in its forecast for companies that might have an IPO in 2023.

Wrap Up

There you have it! A brief roundup that walks you through everything you need to know about Plaid IPO plans.

Plaid’s CEO said they would take their time before applying for an IPO, especially after the CEO’s comments on the company’s growth rate during current market conditions.

Yet, many sources and reports believe that Plaid stock will be made public in the near future.

The information in this article is well-researched and factual. Still, it contains opinions also, and IT IS NOT FINANCIAL ADVICE and should not be interpreted as such, do not make any financial decisions based on the information in this article; we are not financial advisors. We are journalists. You should always consult with a professional before making any investment decisions. We hold no stock or interests in any of the Companies discussed on this website/app.