- TechCrunch reports online/mobile payments platform Braintreee is "currently shopping itself around to potential acquirers," and has held talks in the past with PayPal (EBAY +1.9%) and Square. Though the Square talks are said to have fallen through due to price differences - Braintree has reportedly been asking for $1B, a figure TechCrunch deems "unrealistic" - the site hears the PayPal talks "may still be ongoing."
- Like Stripe, another PayPal rival that has been well-hyped in startup circles, Braintree asserts it offers a simpler, more convenient way for online/mobile merchants to handle payment-processing than PayPal.
- Braintree has scored some high-profile clients, such as Uber, Fab, LivingSocial, and Airbnb, and is now handling $10B/year in transactions (PayPal handled $42.8B just in Q2). Last year, the company spent $26.2M to buy mobile payments/digital wallet platform Venmo.
- Yesterday: PayPal revamps apps, adds new payment tools