Barron’s, citing unnamed industry sources, is reporting that Plaid is exploring avenues to go public in light of the recently-announced termination of an agreement that would allow Visa to acquire the data aggregator for $5.3B.

Why should we care?
Plaid and Visa this week called off a merger agreement amid an antitrust lawsuit brought forward by the Justice Department (DOJ). Both companies decided that protracted litigation was too big a burden to overcome. Sources that spoke with Barron’s hinted that a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC) was a likely path for Plaid’s journey to the public markets, though other options aren’t off the table. Nearly 250 SPACs went public in 2020, raising $82.3B, financial markets platform Dealogic told Barron’s. Mergers with SPACs have cleared the way for known fintech players like SoFi and Paysafe to go public. With Plaid’s acquisition by Visa scuttled by DOJ scrutiny, analysts say regulators are concerned about large industry players gaining monopoly power, creating a roadblock for fintech investors hungry for lucrative exits. “The consensus in Washington is that there has been insufficient enforcement of antitrust rules,” Matthew Epstein, founder and managing partner of Newbold Partners, told Barron’s.

Others contend that talk of Plaid going public in the near future is premature, claiming that “those with their hopes up have them up a few years too early.” For its part, Plaid is keen to pursue a growth trajectory as a stand-alone company, which will likely mean more fundraising. “We’re in a phase as a business where we’re fortunate to be growing really well and we’re going to invest in that growth,” Plaid Co-founder and CEO Zach Perret told Fortune. “We’re excited to be a stand-alone company and we’re excited to be a fintech and what comes next.”