Praise for Limerick brothers as firm becomes most valuable in Silicon Valley

A HIGH-TECH firm founded by two Limerick brothers has become the most valuable private company the Silicon Valley has ever produced.

On top of this, Stripe, which provides online payments, is to create 1,000 new jobs in Dublin over the next five years.

The company was founded by John and Patrick Collison, who grew up in Monaleen and were educated at Castletroy College.

Investors have struck a deal which now values Stripe at $95bn. Participants in the firm’s latest financing, which has raised $600m of new equity include the National Treasury Management Agency, Allianz, Fidelity and Axa.

Its value has almost tripled in less than a year, surpassing those achieved by Facebook and Uber before they went public.

Padraig Flanagan, the principal of Castletroy College said there is immense pride at the pair’s achievement.

He said: “It doesn’t get much better than this.”

“The school community is buzzing with excitement and pride at John and Patrick’s achievements. Many of my colleagues have very fond memories of working with them. They are two excellent students and we are very proud of their success,” he said.

Mr Flanagan was not at the school when Patrick and John were there, but many teachers were. And he said they are remembered fondly.

He added: “They were two very fine young men in every sense of the word. They were really good students, really so bright. They worked hard, were so ambitious. But they were ordinary guys and they’ve not forgotten the school. A number of past pupils are working with Stripe, and it’s great the school link has been maintained, particularly in California.”

Stripe already employs around 300 staff at its Dublin offices, which acts as its international headquarters, and 3,000 globally in 14 offices, with operations in 43 countries.

Dublin represents Stripe's fastest-growing international office and is home to a broad range of functions.

The company’s payment technology is used by a large number of Irish firms, including Intercom, LetsGetChecked and DoneDeal.