Stripe Recaps a Strong 2022, Though Growth Has Slowed

While Stripe Inc. did not experience what it terms the “breakneck” growth it enjoyed in 2020 and 2021, the e-commerce payments giant still processed more than $817 billion in total volume in 2022, up 26% from the previous year, the financial services and software-as-a-service company told customers in its annual user letter released late Wednesday.

On the plus side, Stripe says more than 100 companies each handle more than $1 billion in payments with Stripe each year. That has grown by more than 50% yearly since 2018, the company adds. Much of that growth is being driven by startups experiencing “meteoric success,” according to Stripe. Of the more than 100 startups Stripe defines as category leaders, more than half have grown their revenue tenfold, and a quarter have grown their revenue 100% while using the Stripe platform, the company says.

“Many now-household names, such as Instacart, Substack, and DoorDash charged their customers with us from the very beginning,” Stripe says in the user letter.

In addition, new customers increased by 19% in 2022. Of that group, 55% are based outside the United States. While the U.S. remains Stripe’s largest market, the company now supports businesses in more than 50 countries. 

When it comes to enterprise customers in the technology sector, Stripe says its platform is used by 75% of the 2022 Forbes Cloud 100 and many of the largest Internet companies, such as Amazon.com and video conferencing platform Zoom Video Communications Inc. Other enterprise companies using Stripe include the PGA, Toyota Motors Corp., and Danish shipping company Maersk.

“When enterprises adopt Stripe, it’s typically as part of improving their product in a fundamental way,” Stripe’s report says.

For example, Urban Outfitters used Stripe to launch a peer-to-peer resale fashion marketplace, and automakers such as BMW are selling over-the-air software upgrades directly to consumers, Stripe says. In addition, social media Web site Reddit uses the Stripe platform to enable art creators in more than 100 countries to get paid directly by fans.

In an effort to improve e-commerce checkout, Stripe says more than 100,000 Stripe businesses have upgraded to the company’s checkout products, such as Stripe Checkout and Stripe Payment Element. In 2022, research by Stripe found that 95% of checkout flows from businesses around the world contained five or more unforced errors. “Individually, errors like these might be only mild irritants, but, strung together, they impede checkout completion and lead to measurably lower revenue,” Stripe says.