From its relatively humble origins in the late 1990s, PayPal has emerged as one of the most successful and transformative technology companies in the world.
There are several statistics that bear this out, not least the fact that an estimated 87.5% of online buyers across the globe now use PayPal to complete purchases on the Internet.
PayPal is also fast becoming the preferred payment method amongst online gamblers throughout the developed world.
A Look at PayPal and its Incredible Growth
PayPal was established around the time of the initial dot.com boom in 1998, when it was initially known as ‘Confinity’.
After changing its moniker to the name that we know and love today, PayPal went public through an initial public offering in 2002, before becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of eBay later that year (with a valuation of $1.5 billion).
In 2015, eBay actually spun off PayPal to eBay’s shareholders and the iconic brand became an independent company once again, and has continued to go from strength to strength as the ecommerce market has blossomed
As of today, PayPal has an incredible 361 million active users around the world, while 2019 was a stellar year for the business in terms of revenue and net income.
More specifically, the company raked in a cool $17.772 billion in revenue during this period, ranking 204th on that year’s Fortune 500 list of the largest US firms by this metric. Similarly, it achieved an operating income of $2.719 billion in 2019, with this up incrementally when compared with the previous year’s figures.
The company’s net income for the reporting period came in at $2.459 billion, while its total assets were estimated to be worth a staggering $51.333 billion.
What’s more, the figures for 2020 are likely to be even more impressive, especially as the impact of the coronavirus pandemic compelled consumers to shop more frequently online.
PayPal as a Viable Option for Sports Betting – Why is it Becoming the Number One for Choice?
In the US alone, PayPal is thought to account for around 22% of all online transactions, with this partly fuelled by online and mobile sports bets as a rising number of states legalise this vertical nationwide.
But why exactly is PayPal becoming so popular amongst sports bettors online? Here are some of the main advantages to keep in mind!
The PayPal Security Seal
As a large global entity with a loyal audience base, PayPal is incredibly careful about the merchants and businesses that it associates with.
This is especially true in the case of online casinos and sportsbooks, as these entities require you to provide personal details (including your name, address, date of birth and email identifier). They must therefore be demonstrably safe and secure in terms of how they store this information.
More specifically, PayPal will only partner with reputable and licensed casino brands, which in itself provides an additional layer of protection and a veritable security seal.
The PayPal service and all of its platforms also benefit from secure sockets layer (SSL) encryption protocol technology with 128-bit encryption. This represents the industry standard for financial service providers and payment platforms, so you can rest assured that PayPal has your bankroll covered as a punter.
PayPal also performs server checks to ensure that customers are using an approved browser (which is defined as one that supports SSL 3.0 or higher), with this a key feature when processing web-based transactions.
You Can Access PayPal Seamlessly on all Device Types
As we’ve already touched on, PayPal is also securely available across both desktop and mobile devices, from PCs and AI-powered laptops to state-of-the-art smartphones.
This is highly beneficial for online bettors, who can execute wagers seamlessly across different devices using the same payment method.
This enables them to keep their bankroll in a single account, which is convenient and offers significant benefits from the perspective of responsible gambling.
It Offers Flexible Payment Options to Users
On a final note, PayPal is a flexible payment option that can be linked to alternative accounts and enable you to access methods that may otherwise not be supported at a particular casino.
For example, not every site accepts bank transfers, but you can seamlessly link your bank account to your PayPal alternative and withdraw funds directly through this method.
This is arguably more secure than using a direct bank transfer anyway, as you don’t need to provide your account number or sort code to a casino operator in order to process a payment.
Similarly, you can deposit from or withdraw to a Mastercard using your PayPal account, with this option now unlikely to be found directly on any casino platform in the UK. This also offers similar security advantages, so it’s something to keep of mind when searching for a PayPal casino!
