Build story · Netherlands · 2006–2023
Adyen: one payments platform for the world's biggest brands
Adyen built a single, in-house payments platform covering online, in-store, and global methods. Clients like Uber and Spotify joined, and eBay moved its payments from PayPal to Adyen.
By Shivam Bhandari · Reviewed 31 October 2026 · How we write
by the numbers
- Founded
- 2006, Amsterdam
- IPO
- 2018, Euronext
- Payments processed (2023)
- nearly €1 trillion
What happened
Pieter van der Does and Arnout Schuijff, who had previously sold a payments company, founded Adyen in Amsterdam in 2006. Large merchants used patchworks of payment providers for different countries and channels, making payments costly and complex.
Adyen built one platform from scratch to process payments online, in apps, and in stores across many countries and payment methods. It grew profitably and won global clients including Uber, Spotify, Netflix, and Microsoft. In 2018 eBay announced it would move payments from PayPal to Adyen.
Adyen listed on Euronext Amsterdam in 2018, with its shares rising sharply on the first day. It processed nearly €1 trillion of payments in 2023.
Timeline
- 2006
Adyen founded.
- 2011
Profitable growth with global merchants.
- 2018
IPO; eBay deal announced.
what made it work
- Single platform reduced complexity for big clients.
- Built everything in-house for control and speed.
- Profitability gave stability and trust.
the lesson
Replacing a messy patchwork of suppliers with one integrated solution can win the biggest customers.
Apply it to your business
- 1Where do your customers juggle many suppliers?
- 2Owning your technology can be an advantage.
- 3Profitability builds trust with large clients.
Laws at work in this story
Figures are rounded and drawn from public reports, company filings and widely cited coverage at the time. Check the company's latest filings before relying on any number.