Adyen Doubles Down on Strategic Partnerships Amid Stock Slump, Expanding U.S. Benefit Access and Asia-Pacific Footprint
AMSTERDAM—Adyen (ENXTAM: ADYEN), the global payments platform, is pushing forward with strategic expansions in two critical markets, even as its stock price continues to face significant headwinds. The company announced a partnership with U.S. fintech Forage to enable merchants to accept SNAP EBT (Electronic Benefit Transfer) payments, broadening access for millions of Americans relying on food assistance. Simultaneously, Adyen has teamed up with Asia-Pacific software provider Raptor to deliver integrated payment solutions for hospitality and service businesses across the region.
These moves come at a pivotal time for the company. Adyen’s share price currently sits at €1,270.6, reflecting a challenging period for the once high-flying stock. Over the past year, shares have declined 18.7%, and the five-year return shows a drop of 33.2%. The stock is also down 7.9% in the last month and 9.1% year-to-date, painting a picture of sustained pressure that frames these new partnerships within a broader narrative of a company striving to pivot.
Analysts view the partnerships as a deliberate play for specific, high-volume payment flows. The SNAP EBT integration taps into a stable, government-backed ecosystem serving approximately 42 million Americans, potentially locking in grocery and food retail merchants. The Raptor collaboration, meanwhile, targets operational pain points like payment reconciliation for small to mid-sized businesses in Asia-Pacific’s booming hospitality sector—a competitive arena where rivals like Stripe, PayPal, and Block are also vying for dominance.
“This is a classic ‘deepen and broaden’ strategy,” said market analyst Priya Chen of FinTech Insights. “Adyen is leveraging its platform to embed itself deeper into existing merchant workflows—from grocery checkouts in Ohio to hotel bookings in Singapore—while expanding its serviceable market. The success metric won’t be the press release, but how these flows contribute to volume and margin resilience over the next six to eight quarters.”
The announcements have sparked debate among investors and industry watchers, highlighting the tension between Adyen’s strategic ambitions and its recent market performance.
Michael Rodriguez, Portfolio Manager at Horizon Capital: “These are logical, targeted expansions. The SNAP EBT play is defensible and builds recurring volume. The Asia-Pacific embedded finance move is a direct response to regional growth and fragmentation. Execution is key, but the strategy is sound.”
Sarah Fitzpatrick, Independent FinTech Consultant: “It feels like rearranging deckchairs. Where’s the breakthrough innovation? The stock is down over 30% in five years while competitors have scaled new verticals. SNAP is a low-margin, compliance-heavy market. This looks more like defensive maneuvering than a growth catalyst.”
David Lim, Owner of a boutique hotel chain in Bali: “If Raptor’s integration with Adyen can truly simplify my multi-currency reconciliations and reduce my payment partner sprawl, I’m all for it. We need less complexity, not more.”
Jenna Carter, Policy Advocate for Food Security: “Digitizing SNAP access is long overdue. If Adyen and Forage can make it easier for eligible families to use their benefits at more retailers, that’s a tangible social good, regardless of the stock price.”
For Adyen, the path forward involves demonstrating that these partnerships can translate into tangible financial results. Investors will be watching for early adoption metrics when SNAP EBT goes live in 2026 and for uptake among Raptor’s client base. The company’s ability to sustain its operating margins while investing in these expansions remains a central question for both bulls and bears.
This analysis is based on publicly available information and company announcements. It is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.