An acquisition with a wider plan

On 18 February 2026, cyber_Pixel completed its purchase of 100% of PrestaShop SA from MBE Worldwide. cyber_Pixel brings together the cyber_Folks group and partners from Sylius and BitBag: cyber_Folks contributed capital, while the family foundations of Mikołaj Król and Damian Murawski brought stakes in their companies into the venture. This created both ownership and operational links between three technology brands. cyber_Folks’ official report describes the structure of the transaction.

The new owner presents the acquisition as a step towards a European e-commerce ecosystem connecting hosting, commerce platforms, integrations and other services. After the deal closed, cyber_Folks reported a combined reach of more than 700,000 clients and gross merchandise value (GMV) of around €35 billion. Those figures refer to the group as a whole, not to PrestaShop alone. The announcement of the completed acquisition highlights the opportunity to offer more services to the same customer base.

Before the deal closed, cyber_Folks CEO Jakub Dwernicki spoke about a long-term platform for European e-commerce and an “open source + SaaS” model. In his view, a merchant could start with an open solution and later move to a paid service within the same ecosystem. This is the owner’s strategic intention, not an announced change to the licence or a mandatory migration for customers. Dwernicki’s interview explains the business logic behind bringing these companies together.

Who funds development today

In a letter dated 1 September 2026, the new CEO, Mikołaj Król, said that around 60% of the company’s revenue comes from payments through official partners, roughly a third from Marketplace purchases, and the remainder from other channels and marketing. He said that the company reinvests most partner revenue in the product. These figures were published by the management team; they are not a separately audited breakdown of revenue. The CEO’s letter offers a more detailed explanation of how the company plans to fund further development.

Król also said that the PrestaShop team was responsible for 61% of historical code contributions, rising to 72% in 2025. In his view, development depends on a paid team, not only on voluntary contributions. Those figures do not show the importance of individual changes or who sets priorities, however. An open-source project also needs a clear roadmap, a path for outside contributors and a real opportunity to influence its direction. Revenue matters, but so does the way the company works with its community.

Encouraging merchants to use official payment services or buy modules through the Marketplace may help fund development. PrestaShop wants to label partner modules more clearly and asks users to enable CloudSync, which helps track product usage and attribute partner revenue. This could make it easier to choose add-ons, but it also raises questions: will recommendations be clearly identified, and will alternatives remain just as accessible? Community support cannot be demanded; in the long run, it depends on transparency.

Król’s letter also acknowledged a restructuring in France and the dismissal of a significant number of employees, without giving a precise figure. This is part of the same story: the company is promising investment in the product while reducing the size of its team. Developers and agencies will want to watch the pace of fixes and releases, as well as communication with contributors. Public statements alone do not reveal how budgets have changed for individual parts of the project.

What the community and partners are saying

A Reddit discussion following the letter shows both support and concern, but it is small and does not represent the whole community. One developer welcomed the publication of revenue figures and said they would look at PrestaShop’s payment solution. They also hoped the project would not become “too focused on profit”, while recognising that the company needs to remain financially viable. Another commenter said that finding a balance between profitability and open-source software is difficult. The Reddit thread reflects a tension the letter does not resolve.

Sylius and BitBag are both partners and co-owners, so their statements also represent the interests of the new group. The group positions PrestaShop for small and medium-sized merchants and Sylius for larger, more complex projects, while expecting shared technical and commercial benefits. Agencies may see more integration work and business opportunities in a broader offering. It remains to be seen whether each platform will keep its own roadmap and whether services connected to the owners will receive preferential treatment.

Commercial ownership alone does not determine how open a platform will be in practice. The details matter: how partner offers are labelled, whether users can choose other services, whether the roadmap is public, how outside contributions are handled and how user data is treated. Payments and the Marketplace may fund development, but community support is not automatic. If users can see where the revenue goes and how it benefits the product, this model may work. If paid-service recommendations start to feel necessary for a full experience, trust will be much harder to maintain.

Sources

Transaction completion – cyber_Folks

Acquisition and group figures – cyber_Folks

Interview with Jakub Dwernicki – Strefa Inwestorów

CEO Mikołaj Król’s letter – PrestaShop

Readers’ reactions – Reddit