Stripe Expands Encryption Business Landscape with Acquisition of Wallet Company Privy

Recently, a well-known payment processor in the United States announced the acquisition of a company focused on encryption wallet infrastructure, Privy. This acquisition is expected to be completed in the coming weeks, and the specific terms of the deal have not been disclosed. It is worth noting that Privy will continue to operate as an independent product after the integration.

Privy's uniqueness lies in its embedded wallet technology, which simplifies the entry barrier for users into the encryption world. For example, users can create a wallet without having to memorize complex mnemonic phrases, and they can hold assets or perform operations directly within supported applications without connecting to a third-party wallet. This convenience allows some mainstream platforms to offer a smoother experience for their customers.

Henri Stern, co-founder and CEO of Privy, stated: "While early Wallets were powerful, only those with advanced technical skills could navigate them. Developers had to guide users outside the platform to begin using them, which not only impacted user experience but also hindered user conversion. This resistance fundamentally limits the future development of the encryption sector."

This New York-based startup was co-founded in 2021 by Stern and former Aurora founding engineer Asta Li. Privy recently completed a $15 million funding round, bringing its total funding to over $40 million. According to data, Privy's valuation was approximately $230 million in March of this year.

Privy claims that its technology has been widely adopted across the industry in three years, supporting over 75 million accounts and 1,000 development teams. Its clients span multiple fields, including mainstream encryption applications, restaurant loyalty program startups, and global recruitment companies.

Regarding this acquisition, the co-founder and CEO of the acquiring party stated: "We are excited to combine Privy's Wallet with our liquidity features through a unified platform, thereby achieving a new generation of global internet-native financial services."

This payment giant's layout in the encryption field can be traced back to 2014. Although it suspended its Bitcoin payment business in 2018 due to technical limitations, the company has remained optimistic about the prospects of cryptocurrencies. In 2024, the company began supporting stablecoin payments and launched the "Pay with Crypto" feature in October of the same year, allowing U.S. businesses to accept stablecoin payments and automatically convert them to fiat currency.

In order to improve cross-border transaction solutions, the company completed the acquisition of the stablecoin payment platform Bridge in February 2025, with a transaction amount reaching 1.1 billion USD. This is the company's largest acquisition to date, marking a significant deployment in the stablecoin sector.

In May of this year, the company launched stablecoin accounts in over 100 countries and regions around the world, aimed at helping merchants hold funds and make payments to overseas suppliers using stablecoins such as USDC and USDB.

This series of actions indicates that the payment giant is actively positioning itself to become the preferred provider for clients looking to increase support for encryption products or launch their own encryption products. Currently, a variety of institutions, from large technology companies to traditional banks, have shown a strong interest in exploring encryption technology.