Payments companies’ valuations grow despite pandemic

As digital financial services get a boost during the pandemic, some of the key beneficiaries are payments companies. A couple of industry giants that are seeing ballooning valuations include Square, whose market capitalization of around $55 billion has doubled since May, making it worth more than Truist. Meanwhile, money transfer startup TransferWise is reportedly closing in on a $300 million secondary share sale, putting its valuation at around $5 billion.

Why should we care?
Low-fee digital payments and superior user experiences are proving to be critical differentiators during COVID-19. Square’s rally can be attributed to strong reception for its P2P Cash App and its ability to dole out digital stimulus payments. U.K.-based international money transfer provider TransferWise continues on its march of adding new products and services, including a borderless account, and most recently a license to offer investment products in the U.K. TransferWise is moving beyond a pure payments company to a niche financial provider catering to the needs of nomadic global workers.