John Collison
Born 1990 · Age 35
Irish entrepreneur; co‑founder and president of Stripe. Co-founded multiple startups with brother Patrick Collison; became the world's youngest self-made billionaire in 2016.
Compare Your Trajectory
See how your career milestones stack up against John Collison and other industry leaders.
Life & Career Timeline
Born in Dromineer / Limerick area, Ireland
John Collison born to Denis (electronic engineer) and Lily Collison (microbiologist/author) near Limerick/Dromineer.
First computer course at University of Limerick (age 8)
Attended his first computer course at the University of Limerick, early indicator of interest in computing.
Began learning computer programming (age 10)
Started learning programming at age 10, laying groundwork for later software ventures.
Won 41st Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition
Won the national Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition (41st), earning €7,500 and a Waterford Crystal trophy.
Move to Silicon Valley (with Auctomatic/Y Combinator links)
Following Y Combinator funding/attention on Auctomatic, the Collison brothers relocated to Silicon Valley to grow their startup.
Founded 'Shuppa' with brother Patrick
Co‑founded Shuppa (phonetic of Irish 'siopa' meaning shop), an early online marketplace venture with Patrick in Limerick.
Auctomatic launches (tools for eBay sellers)
Auctomatic, the SaaS tools for large eBay sellers (associated with Shuppa/merger), publicly launches product.
Auctomatic acquired by Live Current Media
Auctomatic was acquired for USD 5,000,000; John was 17 — an early liquidity event that made the brothers young millionaires.
Achieved top Leaving Certificate results (8 A1s, 2 A2s)
Returned to finish secondary school at Castletroy College and received eight A1 and two A2 grades in the Irish Leaving Certificate.
Enrolled at Harvard University
Commenced studies at Harvard University (Patrick was at MIT), while already engaged in entrepreneurial activities.
Co‑founded Stripe with brother Patrick
John and Patrick Collison co‑founded Stripe to simplify online payments; early backing/mentorship from Peter Thiel, Elon Musk, Max Levchin and Sequoia.
Stripe public debut in Palo Alto / early press
Stripe begins to appear in tech press and seed/early investor circles; gains attention from PayPal founders and Silicon Valley investors.
Named in Silicon Valley Business Journal '40 Under 40'
John and Patrick featured among rising young tech leaders in the Silicon Valley Business Journal list.
Raised $18M funding round valuing Stripe ~$100M
A documented 2012 round (commonly cited) raised about USD 18 million and priced the company near USD 100 million.
Named to Forbes 30 Under 30
John (and Patrick) included on Forbes 30 Under 30 lists (multiple years: 2013, 2014 appearances noted in profiles).
Expanded Stripe into Ireland (early international expansion)
Stripe expanded operations into Ireland and other international markets, onboarding a few hundred businesses locally.
Expanded product suite: fraud prevention and billing
Stripe broadened offerings into fraud prevention (Radar), billing and other financial services to move beyond basic payment processing.
Strategic partnership with Visa
Stripe announced or deepened collaborations with major payments players including Visa to expand global reach and services.
Ranked 15th on Forbes 'America's Richest Entrepreneurs Under 40'
Forbes placed John Collison 15th on its 'America's Richest Entrepreneurs Under 40' list (2016).
CapitalG & General Catalyst investment values Stripe at $9.2B
An investment round led by CapitalG and General Catalyst valued Stripe at about USD 9.2 billion; Collison brothers became the world's youngest self‑made billionaires.
Stripe donated $1M to California YIMBY
Stripe under the Collison brothers contributed USD 1,000,000 to California YIMBY, supporting pro‑housing efforts.
Expanded into physical retail and targeted larger enterprise customers
Stripe pursued larger enterprise customers (examples cited: Allianz, Booking.com, Zillow) and acquired point‑of‑sale software capabilities to serve physical stores.
Raised $250M (valuation ~ $35B)
September 2019 funding round raised USD 250 million and valued Stripe around USD 35 billion.
Stripe reported to process $817B in global transactions
Stripe processed approximately USD 817 billion in global transactions for the prior year (reported figures highlighting growth).
Part of consortium to buy Weston Airport; purchased large Irish estate
In 2021 John was in a consortium seeking to buy Weston Airport; earlier in 2021 he purchased a ~1,100‑acre Abbeyleix Estate (reported ~€20M).
Stripe valuation peaks (reported highs in 2021)
Private secondary/share transactions and reporting placed Stripe's peak valuation at around USD 95 billion in 2021.
Forbes article on Limerick sparks backlash and removal
April 2021 Forbes profile criticized for negative depiction of Limerick; the article was removed after backlash and the Collison brothers publicly objected.
Bloomberg Billionaires Index: net worth estimated at $11.4B
Bloomberg estimated John Collison's net worth at USD 11.4 billion and ranked him among Ireland's wealthiest (187th richest globally).
Purchased Millbrook House (derelict) in County Laois
Acquired neighbouring derelict Millbrook House and Abbeyleix Estate (purchased earlier) with plans to spend several million euros restoring it as a family home.
Raised Series I ($6.5B) for employee liquidity
Reported Series I fundraising (~USD 6.5 billion) used in part to disburse money to employees/former employees holding options (reported in coverage).
Stripe valuation markdown to ~$50B during downturn
During the tech market revaluation in 2023 Stripe's reported valuation fell to around USD 50 billion.
Launched 'Smart Retries' product (recovery improvement)
Stripe introduced Smart Retries (reported 2023), improving payment recovery rates and credited with saving users ~USD 3.4 billion.
Enabled stablecoin payments in 70+ countries
Stripe expanded into crypto/stablecoin payment capabilities across a wide set of jurisdictions (reported expansion into 70+ countries).
Reported stake estimate & active angel investing
Profiles and filings list John as an investor in companies like Retool, Meter, AssemblyAI and others; media report an approximate personal stake in Stripe (~10–15% combined with brother historically cited).
Public comments & thought leadership on Ireland policy and planning
John publicly advocated for streamlined planning, housing and infrastructure in Ireland; funded education and technical programs (e.g., immersive software engineering at UL).
Sequoia Capital secondary share purchase (~$861M) valuing Stripe ~$70B
Sequoia purchased secondary shares (~USD 861 million) in a deal that implied a Stripe valuation near USD 70 billion.
Stripe reported to be processing ~$1 trillion annually (recent year)
In public reporting Stripe was cited as processing roughly USD 1 trillion in payments in the previous 12 months (a steep increase year‑over‑year).
Stripe acquires Bridge (crypto infrastructure) for ~$1.1B
Reports and later confirmation that Stripe acquired Bridge, a crypto/stablecoin infrastructure provider, for about USD 1.1 billion — notable strategic acquisition.
Ongoing Irish property restoration and philanthropy
Continued investment in Abbeyleix / Millbrook restoration and philanthropic backing of Irish initiatives (education, healthcare, housing advocacy groups).
Profiles and interviews highlight continued leadership role at Stripe
Multiple 2024–2025 interviews and profiles emphasize John as Stripe president focused on product, engineering and global expansion; continues to publicly engage on policy and tech education.
Key Achievement Ages
Explore what John Collison and others achieved at these notable ages:
Similar Trajectories
Iman Hariri-Kia
Born 1995 · Age 30
Iman Hariri-Kia is a New York–based writer, editor, and novelist who covers sex, relationships, identity, and adolescence. She is the author of A Hundred Other Girls (2022) and the forthcoming The Most Famous Girl in the World (Sept 2024) and Female Fantasy (Oct 14, 2025). Her journalism has appeared in Teen Vogue, Vogue, The Cut, Cosmopolitan, Bustle and more.
Jabari Parker
Born 1995 · Age 30
American professional basketball player. Standout at Simeon (Chicago), one season at Duke (2013–14), 2nd overall pick in 2014 NBA Draft, played multiple NBA teams (2014–2022), rebounded career in Europe with FC Barcelona (2023–2025) and signed with Partizan in 2025.
Logan Paul
Born 1995 · Age 30
American influencer, actor, professional wrestler, entrepreneur, podcaster and boxer who rose to fame on Vine and YouTube. Co-founder of Prime and Lunchly, host of Impaulsive, and signed to WWE.
Henrique Dubugras
Born 1995 · Age 30
Brazilian entrepreneur and co-founder of Pagar.me and Brex. Started coding as a child, built payments business in Brazil, then co-founded Brex to reimagine corporate finance for startups.
Hannah Einbinder
Born 1995 · Age 30
American actress and stand-up comedian, best known as Ava Daniels on HBO Max's Hacks; multiple Emmy, Golden Globe and Critics' Choice nominee/winner.
Nick Skovgaard
Born 1995 · Age 30
Danish fashion designer and founder of the eponymous womenswear label Nicklas Skovgaard. Self-taught weaver who launched an artisanal, narrative-driven brand rooted in handwoven textiles and theatrical presentations at Copenhagen Fashion Week.