PayPal (PYPL) – PayPal Ventures – March 30, 2024
PayPal Ventures helped lead a $46 million series C funding round for “Qoala.” Qoala is an insurance tech firm domiciled in Southeast Asia. It’s very small. The firm has made several of these announcements in the last few months since CEO Alex Chriss took over. That continues a long term trend of numerous VC investments under old leadership as well.
The different part of Chriss’s approach to asset management is within traditional M&A. He thinks PayPal bought too much, integrated too poorly, and focused too little on its core business under Schulman. A $46 million investment is a much lower risk means of participating in potential upside vs. making big, flashy acquisitions. Not only is Chriss avoiding those flashy acquisitions, but he’s even selling off previously purchased companies like Happy Returns. I would like PayPal Ventures to be the only way in which this firm acquires new stakes in more companies. No M&A is needed. Nurture your existing products more effectively. That’s their plan.
