The co-founders of payments powerhouse Stripe today made an impassioned plea for capital markets, regulatory, and labour reform across Europe, saying it was facing an “existential” crisis.

The call for change comes as Stripe announced it had reached an agreement with investors which will allow it to buy shares from current and former staff, which values the payments firm at $91.5bn. Stripe was valued at $70bn last year.

The co-founders also said they planned to invest more in Europe moving forward.

In Stripe’s annual letter, Patrick and John Collison, two of the most high-profile voices in European tech, said: 

“Some say that the European economy has lost its way and that the decline can’t be arrested. We can’t allow that to happen.”

Stripe, founded by the two Irish brothers, has a headquarters in Ireland and serves many businesses across Europe.

On capital reform, the Collison brothers said:

“Large-scale capital market reform is not sexy, but we think it would be tremendously beneficial for the European economy.”

They pointed to evidence showing that Europe needed a broader, deeper, and more diverse array of financing options.

Comparing 80 per cent of corporate lending in the US coming via non-bank sources, the brothers said non-bank lending was just 32 per cent in the EU, which was raising the cost of capital for European firms, which was lowering investment rates.

The brothers also flagged up that the European VC market was lagging behind the US, pointing to figures showing that the US invests around 0.7 per cent of GDP in high-growth firms, compared to less than 0.3 per cent in Europe. 

The co-founders said they would look to do their own bit by expanding its lending business, Stripe Capital, in order to fuel growth of European firms.

The co-founders also called for ”major regulatory reform and simplification” across Europe, echoing comments made by EU commission president Ursula von der Leyen who recently said that there is “too much complexity” and that “administrative procedures are too cumbersome”.

On labour rules, the Collison brothers said they were harming productivity levels.

They added:

“Europe has a strong track record in overcoming existential crises. In all the ways we can, we will continue to support Europe’s economic growth and innovation in our work with millions of European businesses.”