PayPal Still Looking for Ways to Innovate How We Buy and Sell Things

September 15, 2016

You’ve all heard the name by now: PayPal. One of the world’s leading platforms for digital commerce is still going strong today, 17 years after being founded (then known as Confinity) in 1998. Better yet, they’re still trying to innovate the way we pay, and adapt our access to our own money in a world that is heavily reliant on technology.

The phone, or smartphone to be more specific, is the launching pad for a larger venture with PayPal. Now, everyone has a device in their pocket that can be used as a mobile banking and payment system.

But that’s not all. A lot of commerce that takes place online is due to PayPal even if their name’s not on the receipt. Apple Pay, a soon-to-be-available tool in Canada uses the PayPal infrastructure and backend systems.

PayPal held a very sleek, and low-key mixer this week in Vancouver—at the Brix & Mortar Restaurant in Yaletown.

Alexander Peh, PayPal Canada’s Head of Mobile and Market Development, spoke to a small group of Vancouver’s biggest, and best names. The “in crowd” gathered as Peh shared some impressive details about PayPal’s recent activity, and their partnerships with amazing companies, as they strive to improve the lives of everyone they serve.

Peh stated that in 2015 alone PayPal saw 1.4 Billion mobile transactions, totaling 66 Billion dollars exchanged. That’s insane business.

The company’s mantra, To create simple, secure, and compelling mobile buying experiences for Canadians really speaks to the core values that Peh and co are using to fuel their decision making.

Partners of PayPal that affect Vancouverite’s lives on a daily basis are in abundance:

Just Eat (food delivery)
Easy Park (parking)
Honk (parking space rental)
Ripe Rides (black car service)
Starbucks (coffee)
AskforTask (simple tasking)
HelpHub (tutoring)
Hootsuite (social media management)
Cineplex (entertainment)
Best Buy (electronics)
Fundrazr (charity & fundraising platform)
Lush (cruelty-free cosmetics)
Indigo (literature)
Ebay (peer-to-peer purchasing)
Roots (outfitters)
Etsy (hand-made crafts)

These are just a few of the tight-knit partners that PayPal has accrued over the last few years, and they do not look to be interested in slowing down at all.

“With personalized Paypal.me urls, we’re helping eliminate the conversation about splitting bills, or owing money,” said Peh. The dot me urls are used to request money from contacts in an easy way. Simply send them your link, and they will be brought to a screen (on whatever device) where they can send you money via your PayPal account.

Goodbye to Awkward IOUs

Whether it’s splitting a dinner bill, reimbursing for a loan, or simply paying for goods and services, PayPal.me service is a shockingly easy solution to clearing those debts.

“Do you know how much personal debts the average Canadian walks around with?” asked Peh, to which his audience blurted out some absurd numbers on opposite ends of the spectrum. “$416 dollars. That’s a surprisingly high number,” Which is just the type of problem that PayPal is looking to smooth out.

A user-focused platform that eases small frictions in commerce can make all the difference you may need to complete transaction.

So PayPal might feel like an old friend, that you’ve known forever, but in 2016 and beyond they’re intensely firm on their path of adapting to the world of technology. As a leading force in the advancement of digital purchases, expect to see a lot more friends on that list above, and a ton of incredible things from these heavy-hitters.