Wall Street Erases $325 Billion From This Once Unstoppable Company

Core Insights - The article discusses the significant decline in PayPal's market capitalization, which has dropped from $363 billion in July 2021 to $38 billion, representing an 87% decrease from its peak [4] - The shift in market sentiment from optimism to pessimism is highlighted, with PayPal experiencing a slowdown in growth post-COVID-19, as evidenced by a mere 4% revenue increase in 2025 [5][6] Company Performance - PayPal's total payment volume, revenue, and net income surged by 76%, 43%, and 70% respectively between 2019 and 2021, indicating strong performance prior to the pandemic [5] - The company has faced challenges with a flatlining user base and declining transaction counts, leading to the hiring of its second CEO in less than three years [6] Competitive Landscape - The primary risk for PayPal is intense competition in the payments sector, with notable competitors including Stripe, Adyen, Shopify, Global Payments' Worldpay, and Block's Square [7][8] - Additionally, the rise of Apple Pay and Google Pay, which benefit from integration with popular smartphone operating systems, poses a significant threat to PayPal's market position [9]