Marketa (MQ) Q3 2025: TPV Accelerates 33% as Lending and Europe Drive Outperformance
Marketa’s third quarter saw an inflection in processing volume and gross profit, propelled by surging buy now, pay later (BNPL) adoption and European expansion. Strategic investments in bank partnerships and platform flexibility are broadening the addressable market, while value-added services and cross-Atlantic capability position the business for sustainable, diversified growth. Management raised full-year guidance as operational leverage and new use cases fuel accelerating profitability.
Summary
- BNPL and Lending Surge: Lending use cases, especially BNPL, grew at double the company average, driving volume acceleration.
- European Expansion Catalyzes Pipeline: TransactPay acquisition unlocked large enterprise deals and seamless cross-border program launches.
- Profitability Path Strengthens: Operational discipline and scale delivered record EBITDA and a guidance raise for year-end earnings power.
Performance Analysis
Marketa delivered a standout Q3 with total processing volume (TPV) up 33% year-over-year, marking a second consecutive quarter of accelerating growth despite a much larger base. Net revenue grew 28% and gross profit rose 27%, both outpacing expectations and supported by a slightly higher take rate and robust expansion across all major use cases. Notably, non-Block TPV outpaced Block by 2.5x, and Europe’s TPV continued to grow at over 100% year-over-year, now representing a high-teens percentage of total volume.
Adjusted EBITDA hit a record $30 million, representing a 19% margin, as strong gross profit growth combined with disciplined expense management. The quarter benefited from both underlying business strength and several non-recurring items, including recovered fees from terminated programs and an unanticipated network rebate. Share repurchase activity remained aggressive, with nearly 13% of shares retired year-to-date, signaling confidence in intrinsic value.
- Lending and BNPL Outperformance: Lending TPV, including BNPL, grew at roughly double the overall rate, with six of the top ten customers showing accelerating growth.
- Commercial and SMB Traction: New Fortune 500 wins and SMB lending momentum highlight Marketa’s expanding reach in commercial payments.
- Non-Block Diversification: Non-Block revenue and volume growth consistently outpaced Block, reducing customer concentration risk.
Expense management and on-demand delivery segments both accelerated, while Europe’s contribution is reshaping the company’s geographic mix. The combination of strong core execution and new program launches by both existing and new customers underpins the sustainability of growth into 2026.
Executive Commentary
"Our great third quarter financial performance continues to demonstrate tremendous growth, resulting in our ability to deliver higher adjusted EBITDA through both efficiency and scale... This is our highest TPV growth rate since Q1 2024, despite the base we are growing over this quarter being almost 50% larger than the base we grew over in Q1 2024."
Mike Miletic, CEO & CFO
"Our incredible Q3 financial results not only led us to raise our full year 2025 expectations for net revenue, gross profit, and adjusted EBITDA, but they also reflect the deepening of our customer relationships and expansion of our platform capabilities."
Mike Miletic, CEO & CFO
Strategic Positioning
1. Lending and BNPL as Growth Engines
Lending, especially BNPL, has become the key growth driver, with TPV in these use cases growing at about double the company average. Pay Anywhere Cards, a Marketa innovation, are enabling end users to split purchases over time at any merchant, while the company’s early support for Visa’s flexible credential is cementing its leadership in this segment. This is expanding Marketa’s relevance across geographies and customer types, as BNPL adoption accelerates globally.
2. European Platform and TransactPay Integration
The TransactPay acquisition is a strategic unlock, enabling Marketa to offer full program management and EMI licensing in both the UK and EU. This has removed a major friction point for North American clients expanding to Europe and vice versa, and has attracted enterprise-scale opportunities that require a single provider for processing, program management, and compliance. Early traction includes a top-five North American expense management customer expanding into Europe and a deepening enterprise pipeline.
3. Bank-Agnostic Platform and New Partnerships
Marketa’s new business integration platform, designed to rapidly onboard bank partners globally, is now live with Cross River Bank and soon with Coastal Community Bank. This bank-agnostic orchestration layer reduces integration time by over 50%, increases operational flexibility, and supports rapid product and geographic expansion. In Europe, Griffin Bank is live, with additional partners planned for the EU in 2026.
4. Commercial and Embedded Finance Expansion
Commercial payments, especially for SMBs, are gaining momentum, highlighted by a new Fortune 500 client using Marketa to power electronic supplier payments. The company is also investing in value-added services, such as tokenization and risk products, and building white-label app capability to serve embedded finance clients—non-financial companies offering financial products. This broadens Marketa’s reach beyond its traditional fintech base.
5. Operating Leverage and Capital Allocation
Disciplined expense growth and operational leverage are driving margin expansion, with adjusted operating expenses up just 4% year-over-year. Aggressive share repurchases—nearly 13% of shares retired YTD—reflect confidence in the company’s long-term earnings power and intrinsic value, even as Marketa continues to invest in new capabilities and international expansion.
Key Considerations
Q3 marked a strategic inflection, with Marketa leveraging both product innovation and platform investments to capture accelerating demand. The business is becoming less reliant on any single customer or geography as new use cases and cross-border capabilities scale.
Key Considerations:
- BNPL and Lending Mix Shift: Sustained outperformance in lending and BNPL is driving higher volume and engagement, but also introduces forecasting complexity given macro sensitivity and holiday seasonality.
- European Profitability Potential: TransactPay and value-added services should improve gross profit take rates in Europe, closing the gap with North America over time.
- Block Concentration Declining: Non-Block revenue and TPV are growing faster, reducing customer concentration risk and increasing diversification.
- Operational Flexibility: The bank-agnostic platform reduces integration friction and positions Marketa to quickly add new partners and geographies, supporting future growth initiatives.
- Contract Renewals and Pricing: Two large customer renewals are set to impact growth rates in Q4 and early 2026, with management expecting a combined four-point drag on gross profit growth.
Risks
Marketa faces several execution and market risks: The outperformance in Q3 included non-recurring items (fee recoveries, rebates) that will not repeat, while upcoming contract renewals and expected diversification by Cash App could create growth headwinds in 2026. Macroeconomic uncertainty, particularly around BNPL demand during the holiday season, adds forecasting complexity. European yields remain structurally lower, though improving, and competitive intensity is rising as platform capabilities become more commoditized.
Forward Outlook
For Q4 2025, Marketa guided to:
- Net revenue growth of 22% to 24%
- Gross profit growth of 17% to 19%
- Adjusted EBITDA margin of 15% to 16%
For full-year 2025, management raised guidance:
- Net revenue growth of approximately 22%
- Gross profit growth of approximately 23%
- Adjusted EBITDA of just over $100 million, more than 3x last year
Management highlighted:
- Q4 will face a nine-point slowdown in gross profit growth due to non-recurring Q3 items, accounting policy changes, and a major customer renewal
- Bank partner and platform investments will support new product launches and cross-border expansion in 2026
Takeaways
Marketa’s Q3 results reveal a business at an inflection point, with diversified growth drivers and expanding platform capabilities.
- Volume and Profit Acceleration: Lending and BNPL, commercial payments, and European expansion are fueling above-trend growth, while operational discipline is driving record profitability.
- Strategic Investments Pay Off: The TransactPay acquisition and bank-agnostic platform are unlocking new enterprise opportunities and enabling seamless cross-Atlantic expansion.
- Watch for 2026 Headwinds: Renewals and client diversification (notably at Cash App) will temper growth, but stronger underlying business momentum and pipeline diversification should support long-term upside.
Conclusion
Marketa’s Q3 performance underscores the power of platform scale and strategic flexibility, as the business pivots from reliance on a few large customers to a diversified, global growth engine. While near-term headwinds loom, the combination of innovation, operational leverage, and capital discipline positions Marketa for sustained earnings expansion and deeper market penetration.
Industry Read-Through
Marketa’s results signal a broader tailwind for modern payments infrastructure, as BNPL and embedded finance continue to reshape global money movement. The success of pay-anywhere card programs and flexible credentials points to rising demand for unified, cross-border payment solutions. Legacy processors and single-region providers will face increasing pressure as enterprise clients demand end-to-end platforms with regulatory, program management, and value-added service capabilities. For the payments ecosystem, the race is on to deliver bank-agnostic, API-driven platforms that can scale with clients across products and geographies.