Big quarter for PayPal and eBay, the split clearly worked

28 Apr 2016

PayPal’s labour force is growing at a fine pace and now it’s clear why, with the payments giant revealing impressive Q1 results, as market share, revenues and customer numbers all grew substantially. EBay, too, improved.

It has been quite the year for PayPal, its first since splitting from eBay. Its Irish operation alone is expanding to 2,500 workers this year, with jobs growth a consistent theme at the company.

Now, its financials explain why. Its $452m profits for Q1 are almost $100m up on last year, with overall revenues up almost one-fifth to $2.54bn. This was driven by a rise of 11pc in active customers, the lifeblood of a payments firm.

Mobile is skyrocketing for the company, with a 54pc rise in payments via that stream a notable spike. Venmo, PayPal’s popular peer-to-peer payments app, played a large part in the mobile expansion and recorded payment volume of $3.2bn for the quarter.

PayPal recently announced plans to help facilitate international online shopping, revealing a new tool that will enable customers to claim back the cost of returning unwanted goods.

Those who make payments through the service will now have the option to claim back the cost of returning unwanted goods, worldwide, up to the value of €30. Another wheel greased to ensure faster transactions, and encourage greater numbers of customers.

Meanwhile, eBay’s revenues rose around 6pc to $2.1bn in the same period. “We are executing our plan and making progress on our strategic priorities to ensure our buyers have the best choice of products and a simple, personalised shopping experience, while sellers benefit from our powerful selling platform,” said CEO Devin Wenig.

PayPal image via BillionPhotos/Shutterstock

Gordon Hunt was a journalist with Silicon Republic

editorial@siliconrepublic.com