By Simon Hunt
Copyright cityam
Checkout.com said its valuation has hit $12bn (£9bn) as the London fintech reported a surge in growth and unveiled an employee share buyback.
The valuation is a boost on the reported $9.4bn it had been valued at in 2023 but remains well down on the $40bn figure it attracted in a funding round in 2022.
The $12bn figure, which Checkout.com said was calculated using US 409A accounting rules to determine the fair market value of shares, was used to price the buyback programme to “recognise the significant contributions of its employees and provide them with a path to liquidity.”
That came as Checkout said it was on track to exceed 30 per cent net revenue growth in its core business, and expected to process more than $300bn in total ecommerce payment volume in 2025. The fintech said it saw “strong merchant growth” while its “disciplined operational management” was on course to help it deliver its first full year of profitability.
Checkout continues to refuse to disclose its global revenue and profit figures.
The firm said it was on track to increase headcount by 15 per cent in 2025, with plans to onboard 300 new team members by the end of the year.
Checkout chief operating officer Jenny Hadlow told City AM: “We haven’t talked about our valuation publicly in many years but we’re talking today about a valuation of $12bn which is excellent.
“Our merchant base is incredibly diversified – across lots of different geographies and verticals and our top ten merchants only represent 19 per cent of our revenue, so there’s no major single industry or merchant that’s driving that growth.”
She added that the buyback for staff was “a way to reward them for that amazing growth that they have helped drive and been the foundation of making our merchants successful.”
Billionaire exodus
Earlier this year, Checkout’s billionaire founder quit the UK for Monaco, becoming the latest super-rich foreigner to flee the government’s crackdown on non-doms.
Guillaume Pousaz, who started payments firm in 2012, changed his country of residence to the France-adjacent tax haven in April, according to Companies House filings, to avoid the changes the Chancellor made to the non-dom regime.
The departure puts Pousaz, who is worth an estimated £6bn, joins the growing ranks of ultra-high net worth individuals leaving Britain in favour of more tax-friendly jurisdictions.
