Fast, a Startup Backed by Stripe, Discusses Billion-Dollar Valuation

Fast, a two-year-old startup whose technology enables quick checkouts online, is in discussions with investors about a new round of financing between $50 million and $200 million. The deal could value the startup at as much as $1 billion, according to two people familiar with the talks.

The discussions, which are in the early stages and could still unravel, come only one year after the company raised a $2.5 million seed round and seven months after it raised a $20 million financing from Stripe at a $180 million valuation. This unusually rapid pace of fundraising reflects heightened investor interest in financial technology startups, even if they have yet to prove their business model. Fast just launched its core product in September.