Nearly £40billion was wiped off the value of Netflix after the founder who transformed it from a mail-order DVD rental service to the world's biggest streaming giant announced plans to step down.

Reed Hastings, who set up the business with Marc Randolph in 1997, said he would leave the company in June after nearly three decades in charge.

Announcing his departure alongside surging revenues and profits, he said: 'Netflix changed my life in so many ways, and my all‑time favourite memory was January 2016, when we enabled nearly the entire planet to enjoy our service.'

The news stunned Wall Street and shares fell more than 10 per cent in early trading, wiping £37billion off its value. Its earnings guidance for the second quarter also disappointed investors.