Josh Kushner’s investment firm Thrive Capital has reportedly committed US$1 billion to Stripe’s funding goal. It comes after The Wall Street Journal reported last week that the payments software company is seeking advice from investment firms Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase about going public in the next year. Stripe declined to comment on both reports to The Logic. (The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal)

Talking point: The funds would be used to pay Stripe’s tax liabilities and let employees sell their company shares, as well as provide the company “breathing room” in a difficult market for public listings, the Times reported. If completed, it will value the once-highest valued private U.S. company at US$55 billion to $60 billion, a sharp decrease from Stripe’s last round in early 2021 when the company was valued at US$95 billion. The move—which one source told the Times does not mean going public is off the table—suggests startups face trade-offs if they want to raise money in the deteriorating fundraising market. In a separate report by The Information, a source said Stripe is raising up to US$3 billion from existing investors. Shopify had a US$350-million stake in the fintech as of 2021.