PayPal is an online payment system that allows individuals and businesses to send and receive payments electronically. The company was founded in December 1998 as Confinity by Max Levchin, Peter Thiel, and Luke Nosek. It was later merged with X.com, a company founded by Elon Musk, and renamed PayPal in March 2000. PayPal went public in 2002 and was later acquired by eBay in 2002, which made it the preferred payment method for eBay transactions.
PayPal is a secure and convenient way to make and receive payments online. Users can link their PayPal accounts to their bank accounts, credit cards, or debit cards to fund their transactions. PayPal allows users to send money to anyone with an email address or mobile phone number. Recipients can receive the money directly into their PayPal account or transfer it to their bank account.
PayPal also offers a variety of services to businesses, including payment processing, invoicing, and subscription management. It has become a popular payment option for e-commerce websites and online marketplaces, and is used by millions of people around the world. In addition to its core payment services, PayPal has also expanded into other areas, including mobile payments and digital wallet services. The company has acquired several other companies over the years, including Braintree, Venmo, and Honey, to expand its offerings and capabilities.
It provides payment solutions under the PayPal, PayPal Credit, Braintree, Venmo, Xoom, PayPal Zettle, Hyperwallet, PayPal Honey, and Paidy names. The company’s payments platform allows consumers to send and receive payments in approximately 200 markets and in approximately 150 currencies, withdraw funds to their bank accounts in 56 currencies, and hold balances in their PayPal accounts in 25 currencies.
as of March 6, 2023
From a business standpoint, PayPal is second to none really. I know Stripe and Square along with others have done a good job building billion dollar businesses, but PayPal remains a leader with plenty of merchants and customer accounts. The good news is that the stock has been dead money for 5 years, so the time is close at hand for growth in my opinion.
