It is the 17th of March, a huge day of celebration for the estimated 70 million+ global Irish diaspora around the world. On this day we remember our patron saint, one of the greatest Irish individuals in our country’s history, while also celebrating all things Irish. This week, I believe we witnessed the emergence of two new patrons of modern-day Ireland: the co-counders of Stripe and the Collision brothers.
For those of you who haven’t heard the story of St.Patrick, he “emigrated” from Ireland at a very young age, learned his trade (the priesthood), climbing to the very top of his field becoming an immigrant entrepreneur in his own right. He did this through innovation and resilience, developing a simple concept (the shamrock) to help people across Ireland and Europe understand religion, while never forgetting his roots.
Over the last few days, the tech scene across the world has been celebrating Stripe’s latest funding round, giving the company a valuation of $95bn, and creating 1000 new jobs in founders Patrick and John Collisons’ homeland of Ireland. Ironically, the timing of the news and their story bears incredible resemblance to Ireland’s original patron saint.
Like St. Patrick, the brothers were early bloomers, with namesake Patrick winning Ireland’s Young Scientist competition in 2005 at the age of 16. Not to be outdone, John was awarded the highest-ever score for the Irish Leaving Certificate. Patrick did not complete the certificate as he left school early to attend MIT. The siblings became millionaires three years later when their first company, Auctomatic, was acquired for more than $5 million.
In the same way many Irish people do, the brothers emigrated, developing their skills from interactions with different cultures and people, ultimately founding Stripe in 2010. John became the President and Patrick the CEO, growing the company to now being the most valuable startup in US history.
Although there is a glamour of being a tech founder alongside your brother in Silicon Valley, I am sure at the beginning and even throughout their successes, the brothers like St. Patrick and many of Ireland’s 70 million strong diaspora yearned for the comforts of home.
What makes Stripe a game changer, similar to the shamrock, is its simplicity in facilitating innovation. Building economic infrastructure for the internet, allowing all type of business to accept online payments. Simply put, Stripe aims to increase the GDP of the internet. A message that has already resonated with millions of businesses across the globe.
Thankfully and not surprising the brothers want to translate their experiences and successes into shaping a new Ireland (remind you of anyone?). They are doing this not just through Stripe’s massive inward investment into Ireland, but also through more philanthropic supports, like designing and launching a new software engineering programme in their home town at University of Limerick.
For me, these actions, like St. Patrick’s endeavours many centuries ago, set them apart and provide an exemplary model to all Irish people. Patrick and John are a quintessential example of how Irish people are succeeding globally, exuding resilience, an innovative mindset and selflessness in helping others.
The Collison brothers are certainly not patron “saints”, but in my eyes they are the new and very worthy patrons of modern Ireland in 2021.