Ramp, a corporate payments startup backed by Peter Thiel and Thrive Capital, has nearly doubled its valuation to $13 billion following a $150 million secondary share sale.
This marks a significant rebound for the New York-based fintech, which had previously seen its valuation dip amid economic uncertainty and lower customer spending.
The share sale allowed employees and early investors to cash out, with major investors—including GIC, Stripes, Khosla Ventures, General Catalyst, and Thrive Capital—purchasing stock. Ramp was last valued at $7.65 billion in April 2023, but the company’s strong financial performance and expanding product offerings have helped it regain investor confidence.
Ramp competes with Brex, American Express, and Concur, offering businesses expense management, corporate cards, and accounting automation. The company has positioned itself as an all-in-one financial platform, rather than just a payments provider, as it continues to scale.
Ramp’s co-founder and CEO, Eric Glyman, attributed the company’s success to its use of artificial intelligence (AI), which has become deeply integrated into its services.
“It is not possible to use Ramp without using AI,” Glyman said.
He explained that the technology automates expenses, bookkeeping, and financial decision-making.
Ramp’s annualized revenue has more than doubled, rising from $300 million in August 2023 to $700 million. Meanwhile, the company is now processing $55 billion in annualized payments, a fivefold increase from early 2023.
Like many fintech companies, Ramp faced challenges in 2022 and 2023, with its valuation dropping to $5.8 billion due to higher interest rates and reduced corporate spending. However, investor appetite for high-growth startups appears to be returning, as evidenced by similar valuation rebounds at Stripe ($91.5 billion) and OpenAI.
The secondary share sale allows employees to unlock some of their equity, reducing the pressure for an immediate initial public offering (IPO). While Ramp has no immediate plans to go public, Glyman acknowledged that it remains a long-term possibility.
“There isn’t a strong need for an IPO right now, but companies that aim to stand the test of time often pursue going public,” he said.
The Financial Times and CNBC contributed to this report.
