John Collison
John Collison | |
|---|---|
_(15088695584).jpg) Collison at the WebSummit | |
| Born | August 6, 1990 Dromineer, County Tipperary, Ireland |
| Nationality | Irish |
| Education | Castletroy College |
| Alma mater | Harvard University |
| Known for | Auctomatic; Croma; Stripe |
| Relatives | Patrick Collison (brother) |
John Collison (born 1990) is an Irish billionaire entrepreneur. He is best known for having co-founded Stripe with his brother, Patrick. The brothers are worth at least $3.2 billion each, after San Francisco-based Stripe raised $150 million from CapitalG, an investment division of Google's parent company Alphabet, and General Catalyst Partners. The brothers hold a controlling interest in Stripe and will be able to retain control should the company go public.[2]
Biography
In 2007, Collison founded "Shuppa" with his older brother Patrick in Limerick, Ireland.[3] The company later merged with Auctomatic, which was funded by Y Combinator,[4] and Collison moved to Silicon Valley.[citation needed]
Auctomatic was a software company that built tools for the eBay platform.[5] The company was also funded by Chris Sacca.[6] Auctomatic was acquired for $5 million in March 2008, when Collison was 17.[7][8][9][10]
In 2009, Collison (having returned to finish secondary school at Castletroy College) received 8 A1 and 2 A2 grades in the Irish Leaving Certificate examination. He continued to study at Harvard University, commencing his studies in September 2009.[11] Collison is a pilot[12] and a pianist.[13]
In 2010, Collison co-founded Stripe, which received backing from Elon Musk, Peter Thiel, Max Levchin, and Sequoia Capital.[14]
In November 2016, the Collison brothers became the world's youngest self-made billionaires, worth at least $1.1 billion, after an investment in Stripe from CapitalG and General Catalyst valued the company at $9.2 billion.[15]. In the same year, 2016, John was ranked by Forbes the 15th in the list America's Richest Entrepreneurs Under 40. [16]
In 2018, Stripe, under the direction of the Collison brothers, contributed $1 million to California YIMBY, a pro-housing development lobbying organization. The Collison brothers are citizens of Ireland.[17]
References
- ^ "John Collison". Forbes. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
- ^ Rudegeair, Peter (26 September 2018). "Payments Fintech Stripe Valued at $20 Billion in Latest Funding Round" – via www.wsj.com.
- ^ "Shuppa Bebo profile". Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 26 November 2012.
- ^ "Frequently Asked Questions". www.ycombinator.com.
- ^ "Auctomatic launches better tools for eBay powersellers". 22 October 2007.
- ^ "Thank You, Auctomatic". Chris Sacca's 'What is left?'.
- ^ McDonald, Henry (28 March 2008). "The Guardian". London, UK.
- ^ "Getting right down to business in TY". The Irish Times. 4 April 2008.
- ^ "BBC News". 27 March 2008.
- ^ McBride, Louise (28 December 2008). "The Irish Independent".
- ^ "Harvard next on menu for knowledge-hungry dot.com high flyer". The Irish Times. 9 September 2009.
- ^ "40 under 40". 20 November 2011.
- ^ "The Irish Times". 9 September 2009.
- ^ "Stealth Payment Startup Stripe Backed By PayPal Founders". 28 March 2011.
- ^ Mac, Ryan. "Stripe Investment Makes Cofounder The World's Youngest Self-Made Billionaire". Forbes. Retrieved 28 November 2016.
- ^ "America's Richest Entrepreneurs Under 40 2016". 12 December 2016.
- ^ "Tech CEO housing crisis". www.bizjournals.com. 2018. Retrieved 3 February 2020.