How the PayPal Mafia Redefined Success in Silicon Valley

The "PayPal Mafia" is no mafia at all. It's a diaspora.

Being a part of this was one of the most incredible things I've ever done or will ever do.  I will forever be grateful to my dear friend Peter Thiel for including me in the journey.  And this is one of the best stories I've ever read about that time and the impact it's had. -- RDM

 by Conner Forrest
Tech Republic
July 1, 2014

The "PayPal Mafia" is no mafia at all. It's a diaspora.

"Basically, we were kicked out of our homeland and they burned down our temple. So, we were scattered to the four corners of the globe, and we had to make new homes."

That's how David Sacks, former COO of PayPal and current CEO of Yammer, described it. The ominous "they" in this story is eBay, and eBay is is partly responsible for both the success of PayPal and why the founders walked away from it.

It's a pretty rare occurrence that a startup will make it from inception to exit. What is decidedly less common is that startup reaching an exit upwards of $1 billion dollars. Yet even more extraordinary is that exit bec…