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Stripe Capital

stripe.com

251–260 of 283 posts

Re: Stripe Capital

#251
post #153

When is this launching in the EU?

In the EU you can get credit for 1% and less at any German/UK/French/... bank. Do you really want to pay 10-30% instead at Stripe?

Banks don't offer a suitable alternative. As a SMB, applying for a loan takes ages in comes with a boatload of paperwork. Same as in the US, where you can probably also can get better terms with a traditional bank.

Re: Stripe Capital

#252
post #74
post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[Stripe cofounder.] > Based on the amount of junkmail I get offering my small business loans, I have a hard time believing the "filling a niche no-one else is offering" narrative. Leaving aside questions about how good those lenders actually are to work with, it's still a surprisingly inefficient market. Businesses built on Stripe still report that access to capital is one of the _very top_ limiting factors on their…

>Our hypothesis is that existing lenders are disproportionately ineffective at detecting and underwriting internet businesses Is that because you have a view into your business customers cash flows, so you think you'll be able to better assess risk than traditional lenders?

Which is exactly why Square got into it as well: https://squareup.com/us/en/capital

Re: Stripe Capital

#253
post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[Stripe cofounder.] > But one thing strikes me as odd about this whole arrangement. The better a business performs, the quicker it is able to repay the loan, and the higher its effective APR becomes! It's essentially a prepayment penalty in disguise. So you'd better make sure the loan doesn't help your business too much, or you'll end up getting hosed by the loan fee. Yes, this is right -- if your business suddenly s…

Just popping in to say this is one of the most impressive C-level replies i have ever seen. Straight acknowledgement of the criticism from OP, but explains the reasoning and demonstrates the benefit to both customer and stripe. Closes with willingness to change if business model doesnt produce results matched by test market. Doesnt read as defensive or marketing buzzwordy, just straightforward and simple. I hope to o…

The good response is rooted in good planning. They're not out to scam you.

Re: Stripe Capital

#254
post #222
post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[Stripe cofounder.] > Based on the amount of junkmail I get offering my small business loans, I have a hard time believing the "filling a niche no-one else is offering" narrative. Leaving aside questions about how good those lenders actually are to work with, it's still a surprisingly inefficient market. Businesses built on Stripe still report that access to capital is one of the _very top_ limiting factors on their…

Dude, outside of the SV bubble access to capital is always the top for any small business that believes in themselves. Did you "discover" labor is the second biggest?

They are replying to another comment who had questioned the need for yet another loan service. It's fair to point out the persistent problem of access to capital, even if it's obvious to many.

Re: Stripe Capital

#255

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I created a version with sliders, making it easier to experiment: https://connect.calcapp.net/?app=atzggn Also, you don't have to duplicate the spreadsheet to make it editable, you can just use it straight away. (Disclaimer: I created it with Calcapp, which is a SaaS product I built.)

That’s a super neat app for excel a junky - bookmarked!

Glad you like it. If you or anyone else need a calculator to share on Hacker News, let me know and I'll make sure it can be launched an unlimited number of times for free. (Otherwise, you'll quickly bump into the limits of our free plan.)

Re: Stripe Capital

#257

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> "But I worry that it's vulnerable to bad people." You worry too much for them, that's why they charge a hefty interest fee. A certain % of non-payments or partial payments are built in.

They probably have some data science and a decent fraud model to keep risk within an acceptable band too.

either way it's a business move, they either win or loose. If they get screwed, they'll end it and take a loss. Part of business, they're not doing it as charity.

Re: Stripe Capital

#259

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's no prohibition on controlling electricity as such, the most relevant actual prohibition (there are a few other justifications for particular circumstances) is on starting a fire, which prohibits turning on a light (which most devices involve) and also many ways of controlling electricity (e.g. a switch) violate as it a spark is created. Benefitting from a fire that's started before Shabbat is not prohibited,…

I suppose I'm left wondering if this causation loophole - a properly engineered switch being deemed not to cause anything, despite an obvious cause/effect linkage to an observer - is usable in other, nastier scenarios. Can I (setting aside the obvious secular punishments for a moment) murder someone with a bomb activated via one of these switches?

IMHO those are not comparable scenarios.

In the case of murder, the result and intent is prohibited, so no matter how you get there, that's a sin.

In the case of having a fire on Shabbat, there's nothing wrong with wanting a fire or having a fire, the result is not prohibited or a moral wrong; but in that particular time and place you are prohibited to light a fire.

A hundred years ago the standard solution was to simply have someone else (non-jewish) do it, e.g. local gentile boys used to spend saturday mornings doing minor chores in jewish households for some tips. Nowadays it is done with technology. Murder is inherently wrong, so having someone else do your murdering for you is also wrong, but these actions are merely prohibited for you personally so having someone else (or something else!) do it in your stead is considered just fine.

Re: Stripe Capital

#260
post #22

I have the feeling that this will have the same net effect for startups -- or even more -- that Stripe-as-a-payment-gateway also had. This could be an instant accelerator to self-funding.

The thing about taking money in the form of debt is if the company gets into trouble, debt holders are the first to get paid and or get a stake in the company. That is why it can be dangerous for startups to take on debt.
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