All about PayPal. Payment system PayPal. Paypal: what is it and how to use it

Dynamically developing Internet network and means ecommerce, brought into our lives a rather new concept - electronic money. For another 10 years, few people could believe that it would be possible to buy something on the Internet and still pay virtual currency. But now electronic money has become a part of our lives. Yandex Money, Qiwi, Web Money - the name of these payment services no longer comes as a surprise to many network users. Annual turnover amounts to hundreds of millions of dollars, and this figure is growing inexorably.

Shopping in online stores is convenient, profitable, and fast. I think that no one will argue with this thesis. But not always domestic online stores can satisfy the needs of buyers, and then you have to look away trading platforms USA and Europe. And here one problem arises - how to pay for the goods? A few of them work with Russian payment systems, but most prefer PayPal. Just today we will talk about what PayPal is, where this payment system came from, and why PayPal is so popular in Europe, the USA, and throughout the world.

PayPal - getting to know the new payment system

PayPal (translated from English as “a friend who helps you pay”) on this moment is the largest and most famous operator electronic payments in the world. Hundreds of millions of people make online purchases using PayPal every day. But where did it all start?

The company was founded in March 2000 by a group of students, among whom was an immigrant from the USSR, Max Levchin. From the first months PayPal works began servicing auctions held on eBay. In less than a few months, PayPal was already working with a million auctions, offering people to pay for services through their payment system. Such rapid growth could not be ignored, and in 2002 an agreement was signed according to which eBay inc. bought the rights to PayPal, and since then more than 50% of all eBay auctions are paid using PayPal.

In 2013, it was possible to use the services of the payment system in 198 countries around the world. At the same time, the company operates in 29 national currencies of different countries. Not long ago, the number of registered PayPal users exceeded 200 million people. The incredible pace of development of this payment system forced many competitors to close their companies and leave the market. PayPal is the undoubted leader in the world online payments, and this leader is coming to us.

PayPal recently came to Russia, and many Russian sellers and buyers who prefer foreign internet stores and auctions were able to legally withdraw and deposit money into their PayPal account. Previously, everything was done through third parties, who asked for a large commission for cashing out. But now these “troubled” times are a thing of the past.

Due to the fact that PayPal opened its representative office in Russia, there was a need to study the payment system in more detail, understand its advantages over others, and understand the opportunities that open up through the use of PayPal.

PayPal: reasons for popularity and rapid development

Undoubtedly, PayPal has a number of advantages, thanks to which 200 million users around the world use this payment system. Among them are:

  • Globality

The most important advantage of PayPal is its global nature. Wherever you are, with only access to the Internet, you can pay for goods in an online store from the USA or China in a matter of seconds. PayPal provides a wide range of opportunities for its users, and regularly introduces new products to its service and functionality.

  • Convenience and speed

Speed ​​and ease of use is another PayPal trump card. All your data is already in the system, and you do not need to enter your full name, account numbers, and confirmation codes each time. Everything is done as simply and quickly as possible, so that the buyer can pay for the goods without bothering with the payment system.

  • Safety

Security comes third on the list of PayPal benefits, but this does not mean at all that it is third in importance. The company devotes the most time to security issues, because everyone understands that clients trust PayPal with hundreds of millions of dollars, and if even once a major leak occurs, then the authority will be undermined once and for all. Who wants to use a payment system that can steal your money?

We can say that the company's management is obsessed with security, and is constantly introducing more and more new mechanisms to protect personal data. Some users complain that there are a lot of protection methods, and they interfere with quickly working and making purchases. But let better person will suffer 20 seconds of inconvenience rather than lose everything that is on the electronic wallets.

PayPal also acts as an arbiter and resolves controversial financial issues that arise among users of the system. If a person proves that he was deceived and he paid via PayPal, but did not receive the goods or agreed services, then the company will return the amount spent from the fraudster’s account. If there is no money in the account, PayPal will compensate everything at its own expense.

  • PayPal and eBay

The fourth advantage of the PayPal payment system is that about 90% of all auctions are paid through it. This is not surprising, because the most popular auction in the world was bought by PayPal back in 2002, tying all payments to it.

IN Lately The popularity of eBay, which has a presence in 30 countries around the world, is growing, and the number of PayPal users is correspondingly increasing. Payment system every day it is exploring new countries and conquering large markets. PayPal recently started operating in Russia, but faced great competition from Yandex Money, and especially Web Money.

  • Official status

Although PayPal does not position itself as a bank, it has all the attributes of a financial institution. In the US, PayPal is regulated by the Banking Act. It is this factor that distinguishes PayPal from other payment systems that are not related to real money, and this limits their functionality when working with foreign online stores. What does it mean? With PayPal, you have real dollars (or the currency of your country) in your account, and in other payment systems, your wallets contain title units that can be converted into currency. But the signs themselves are not currency, they are just a number that has no value.

PayPal offers a powerful, comprehensive financial instrument where all transactions are carried out with real, “live” money. You “link” a payment card (or several), a bank account, to your PayPal account, you can automatically top up your PayPal balance or withdraw money at any time, and even if you sell something, you can accept payments from customers directly from their payment cards (they do not need to have a PayPal account) and much, much more. By the way, PayPal works closely with fiscal authorities, transmitting to them information about payments received by the user.

  • Innovation

Everything that you are used to using in domestic payment systems was borrowed from abroad. PayPal is an innovator in the world of online payments, and all the newest and most convenient features are developed by this company.

PayPal was the first in the world to revolutionize mobile payments, offering its users to make instant payments using mobile phones. With this service you can pay anywhere and always with only a mobile phone in your hands. This technology Several large banks in Russia and Ukraine have already picked up the idea.

PayPal payment system: how to use?

There is a small minus here. In each PayPal country offers its own set of services and functions available to registered users. The most ample opportunities among residents of the USA, because it is there that all new products and innovations are tested before being released to the rest of the world. A lot of functionality is available to residents of Europe, Australia and China. Unfortunately, the set of functions for users from post-Soviet countries is minimal, or very close to it.

This is due, first of all, to the fact that goods from stores in the USA and Europe are not so widely in demand here. Plus, the electronic payments market has been dominated for many years by other giants, which PayPal will have a hard time ousting from the RuNet.

How much does it cost to usePayPal?

Opening and using an account is absolutely free. There is also no charge for sending money. However, it is worth noting that the bank in which the account is opened can take a small percentage. As a rule, this is a commission for converting and sending currency. PayPal services are paid by the one who receives the funds (unlike Web Money, where the one who sends the money pays).

We cannot give the exact amount of commissions, because it varies based on many factors: account type, amount, geographical location of the recipient and sender, etc. You can find out more about the commission percentage on the official PayPal website.

Which to choosee-mail forPayPal

When registering with PayPal you need to provide an address Email. We advise you not to use free services that provide the opportunity to register a mailbox. First of all, this is related to safety. If you want to be as confident as possible that your money will remain safe and sound, then set up an email account on Gmail or other reliable services.


So, you have read our article “Getting to know the PayPal payment system” and decided to become a user of this most popular payment system in the world. The solution is very logical: the vast world of foreign online shopping will open up for you, you will be able to independently pay for purchases at the ebay auction and hundreds of other online trading platforms.

Did you know that the name PayPal consists of two English words: " pay" And " pal" and literally translates as "pay your friend"?

Opening and maintaining an account with PayPal is completely free. There will be no surprises here. PayPal, of course, is not a charitable organization; a commission is charged for services, but this applies to recipients of funds and sellers.

To register with Paypal you will need:

  • A payment card that must have an amount equivalent to at least several US dollars on its account (otherwise PayPal will not be able to authorize it). You can find out more about which card to choose for work in our series of articles devoted to this issue.
  • Electronic mail (e-mail). In theory, any email address will do. As a recommendation, we can only offer do not use free services, and if there is no alternative to them, then stick to the most secure ones - for example Google Gmail, Yahoo Mail, Yandex Mail.

Registration in any online service is, as you probably already know, not difficult. And PayPal is technically no exception here. However there is important nuances, which you definitely need to know about in advance. This company very carefully monitors compliance with the rules and, if they are violated, can simply block not only the violator’s account, but also often others associated with it Accounts with a lifetime ban from registering again. What is worth knowing right away?

  • An individual is allowed to have only one PayPal account (there is only one exception: you can have one personal account for personal purposes, and one corporate for business).
  • It is possible to delete your Paypal account, but the procedure is not quick. You submit an application, the account is frozen for 180 days (the period for considering possible financial claims against the owner) and then closed after about a year. You cannot open new accounts during this time. All closed accounts are under close scrutiny.
  • You cannot change the country of registration in your account, unlike other data.
  • If an account is blocked due to violation of the rules, the funds on its balance are frozen for 180 days and after this time are transferred to the owner. However, if it turns out that the owner’s data is falsified, then he will not be able to receive these funds.

Registration instructions:

You can ask questions about how to register with PayPal on our forum.

According to reviews from many users: it is advisable to verify the card immediately after registering an account, because Before the card is verified, there are quite strict limits on the amount of one-time payment sent. Card verification, as a rule, does not cause any particular difficulties for anyone.

Helpful information

  1. If you live in one of the CIS countries (except for the Russian Federation and the Baltic countries), then after registering with PayPal your balance will be zero. Don't worry - there's nothing wrong with that, that's how it should be. The funds will be withdrawn from your bank card as needed. When returning, the funds are returned directly to the card.
  2. Residents of the Russian Federation and the Baltic countries are allowed to accept payments. The funds withdrawn from the card during registration and verification will be immediately credited to their account balance. In order to send a payment, they do not need to replenish the balance - funds can be withdrawn both from the account and directly from payment card. For example, if the balance is a certain amount, but you need to pay more, then the missing funds will be charged from the card.
  3. In Ukraine and Kazakhstan, you cannot accept payments via PayPal, as well as withdraw funds from PayPal to a bank account.
  4. After linking the card, no matter what currency it is in, be sure to immediately change the conversion center, setting the default center not to Paypal, but to your bank. Otherwise, there will be extra expenses.
  5. Don't experiment with PayPal by introducing other people's cards, different bank accounts, etc. Don't draw attention to yourself. Otherwise, you risk being audited.
  6. Do not give your username and password to third parties PayPal account. Do not participate in dubious transactions or accept dubious offers where you are asked to pay for something, promising huge commissions.
  7. If you log into your PayPal account from different countries (calculated by IP address) or there will simply be a large number of logins from different computers, it is possible that the security service may suspect that unauthorized persons have gained access to the account. Such an account risks being blocked, and you may be asked to send copies of documents.
  8. Very often, scammers send fake emails, similar to real letters from ebay, PayPal, CityBank etc. These letters vary in content, but ultimately require one thing from the user: follow the link in the letter and enter your username and password. As you probably guessed, this whole scheme is designed to trick you into giving you your username and password. By following the link, you will be taken to a fake website (usually just a couple of pages) of the company on behalf of which the letter was sent, where you are asked to log in. If you fall for this scam and provide personal information to scammers, you can get into serious trouble. There is only one way out: do not believe everything that comes to you by e-mail, no matter how plausible it may look. Check links carefully. Enter your username and password only on the authorization page, which you reached by typing the address yourself, or using a link from your browser bookmarks. And remember: if we're talking about about a real payment system, it will never require your login and password by e-mail. If you receive such a letter, it means that it was sent by scammers.
  9. Do not use "instant" (or prepaid/gift) payment cards that can be purchased online. Such cards, as a rule, do not have the owner’s first and last name (any name can be specified), as well as a plastic carrier - they simply send you a number and expiration date. The cost of using such a card in PayPal can be high - your account will be blocked once and for all. Remember: a credit (or debit) card can only be issued by a bank after carefully checking your personal data.
  10. Upon return of funds ( full return through “Dispute” or partial refund), the money does not appear on the card instantly. Usually your bank (and the timing depends only on it) keeps them in a “frozen” state for another 3-20 days.

Video instructions for registering on Paypal

They appeared quite recently. Every day there are more and more possibilities for their use. The very first and the very active systems steel electronic applications payment systems. PayPal is considered one of the earliest, although it was not the first.

The owners of the resource, while no one really knew what PayPal was, decided to sell it to the online auction eBay. And it was a win-win. After all, all purchases on eBay made through PayPal are not subject to additional fees.

In addition, the payment system has developed one of the most effective principles information protection. Thanks to this, all payments made through PayPal are not only encrypted, but also insured in case of purchase poor quality goods or a product that does not correspond to the expected appearance. In other words, if you don't like what the courier company delivered, you don't have to contact eBay. All you have to do is contact PayPal for a refund.

E-commerce in Russia

Electronic systems are not limited to a list of 10 companies that you may know. Every year hundreds of electronic payment systems are born. The same number fail to compete every year.

In Russia, over a decade and a half, only a few companies have withstood competition. Among them, the most popular were WebMoney, Yandex.Money and RBK Money. But their disadvantage still remains the inability to pay bills from Chinese or American online stores. And if there is such an opportunity, then transactions are subject to large commissions.

PayPal's entry into the Russian market

Due to the fact that the system operates in more than 190 countries (which is 85% of all states and 95% of the world's territories), it is international. The ability to convert and transact 24 currencies makes it unique.

Unfortunately, PayPal in Russia does not have complete package services due to its recent entry into the market, namely in 2013. But due to high demand, already in 2016 it is planned to sign an agreement for the supply of goods through Russian Post, which will significantly reduce the cost of delivery and make it possible to order medium and small quantities of goods.

Advantages over programs available in the CIS

When choosing an electronic payment system, you should always first of all pay attention to what exactly the purpose of registration is. If you just need to receive payment for Internet activities, especially on Russian or CIS sites, then the popular resources already discussed will be more than useful and convenient for you.

What is PayPal:

  1. Consumer protection and purchase insurance.
  2. An international system that allows you to perform financial transactions around the world with a minimum commission.
  3. PayPal money is official electronic money. WebMoney currency is title units that can be equated to stocks and bonds. They have their own cost, but since no electronic debit system is approved in the CIS except PayPal, only this company can provide guarantees.
  4. Card and bank details are filled in only once, along with the CVV2 code. PayPal transfer is not required additional information, except for confirming the one-time SMS password.
  5. Instant payment and withdrawal of funds.

PayPal Registration

To successfully make purchases, issue and pay invoices, you need to create your own PayPal wallet. To register, simply enter your Email and create a password.

In general, the entire authorization process is very similar to creating an account in WebMoney - even simpler. Each step is accompanied by hints, and the web interface is concise and clear.

There will be no redirects, so all you need is a reliable email address. It doesn't matter where you are Mailbox located on Yandex or Gmail - this will not affect the activation process.

Next, you need to determine which card to link to your wallet. If your card is not supported by the system, which is very likely, then PayPal simply will not link it to your wallet. If this is the case, do not despair, because you can easily find a list of all the banks that the system cooperates with in your country. This list is constantly updated and expanded.

If you prefer any bank, then ask its nearest branch about plans for cooperation with electronic systems.

Making a purchase with PayPal

This system works as a support for many Internet resources. For example: buying and selling goods in online stores, paying on international survey sites or receiving funds for work performed as a freelancer, and so on. If you have previously encountered payment through your bank’s Internet banking, then the same rules apply here.

An important difference is that to pay for any product you need to know not the account details or the recipient’s card, but just an email address. If you corresponded by Email, then before sending money, it is better to clarify the email address to which the recipient's PayPal account is linked. Don't forget about this!

You can transfer money to a freelancer’s PayPal account in exactly the same way.

Withdrawal of funds to an attached account

It is worth noting, first of all, that according to the level of access to services, all countries and, accordingly, clients are divided into three types:

  1. full access to all functions;
  2. buying and selling through the system;
  3. purchase only (that is, payment only).

If the first and second types allow you to cash out your earned money, then in the third case it is possible to cash out, so to speak, in kind, that is, through the purchase of another product on eBay. All CIS countries, except Russia, can only make purchases and challenge the wrongness of the seller in case of poor quality goods. That is, you can spend money and receive either a full or partial refund (depending on the terms of purchase).

Since 2015, PayPal in Russia allows you to withdraw funds to your personal account. checking account with preliminary conversion if this account is opened in rubles. Conversion occurs mainly from euros or US dollars.

How to link an account

It’s worth mentioning right away that attaching an account and a card are two different possibilities. Usually the account holder has only one card, but there are cases when one of the spouses makes two cards for one account so that the other can use it. This is just a special case, but there is a need for separation, and PayPal complied this condition for the benefit of clients.

As at the very beginning, during registration, when you indicated and confirmed your debit card, the same procedure must be carried out with the account of the second card. Once all relevant confirmations and test payments have been returned to your account, you can continue working, transfer your funds to any other PayPal account, or spend it all on new collection sports sneakers, for example.

PayPal Here

The situations are completely different. It’s also not always possible to drag a laptop along with you, but you have to work through the system. In order to transfer funds and make a purchase, there is absolutely no need to carry a computer with you. All you need to do is install PayPal Here on your phone.

What is PayPal Here? This is a program that can be downloaded from Google Play or Apple Appstore to make instant payments. Since 2015, PayPal Here has released a special card reader that can be attached to the phone via the headphone jack.

Thus, the phone turns into a portable terminal.

Deviations when trying to link a card

Earlier, you already learned that there may be cases when the card is not suitable for registration in the PayPal system. The reasons for this may be different, and you will probably be informed about them from the bank by call or statement. But the most common and primitive ones are, firstly, the limit on online purchases (most likely, it is zero, because during registration in order to check the card account, PayPal blocks $1, which then, of course, returns it back), and -secondly, the limit for online purchases may be exceeded.

Both the first and the second can be resolved in 5 minutes with one call to your bank’s technical support.

PayPal versus WebMoney

You have already figured out what PayPal is: you have successfully completed registration, verification and other procedures. But before that, all their business was conducted in the WebMoney system.

How possible is it to withdraw funds to PayPal from WebMoney and vice versa? The answer is very inspiring, because the circulation of funds between these systems is absolutely possible in both directions. To do this, it is enough to create a corresponding application in WM Keeper to exchange WebMoney title units for equivalent electronic currency in a PayPal wallet.

As usual, the application will be processed within 24 hours. This is the only case when Payment: Paypal will take longer than a few minutes.

What can you buy with PayPal?

A system that covers the whole world simply must be universal in all corners of the Internet. Unfortunately, many companies cannot afford such cooperation, because, in fact, PayPal is (was until 2015) owned by eBay, while its direct competitors are AliExpress and others. Therefore, many rival companies do not have the right to use this resource.

Contrary to this, there are still a large number of ads registered on AliExpress that offer an option such as PayPal payment. Since the company gained independence from eBay only in 2015, it has not yet managed to gain mass popularity on other resources. But, given the low survival rate of any electronic payment system, PayPal has even greater prospects.

As previously reported, the prospects for PayPal in Russia and throughout the CIS are clear and cloudless. Entering the European market and approving the system at the legislative level as recommended for conducting financial transactions only strengthened our position and made it possible to develop work in the direction of the Middle and Far East, as well as the expanses of the Russian Federation.

Following this, it is planned (in 2017) to update PayPal in Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan. Consequently, such changes will entail rapid development medium and small businesses, which will lead to positive changes in the economy of the entire country.

Summarize

In this short article, we discussed in detail one of the most famous international payment systems constantly used in different countries world, including Russian Federation, Ukraine, Belarus and the United States of America. The article also discussed purchases made using this system, the main problems that an inexperienced user could have, and quick ways solutions to such issues. By the way, we also touched on the topic special applications for different operating systems mobile phones so you can use PayPal anytime, anywhere.

If you were looking for detailed information about the best international payment system in the world, you have found it. The article presented to you contains information confirmed by official sources, including the official PayPal website.

Without payment systems, it would be impossible to develop the e-commerce market either in our country or in any other country in the world. Currently, the choice of payment systems in Russia is quite large, and in the world it is simply huge.

PayPal is the largest payment system of all existing ones, covering customers in 202 countries, and the total number of transactions carried out in 2016 exceeded 5 billion. We can safely conclude that great amount people and financial organizations choose this particular payment system, trusting it with their money.

The company's developers claim that PayPal's security system is one of the most secure in the market of electronic payments and transfers. It’s easy to agree with this, because the company has created Buyer Protection Program, where a client who has not received his product or it turns out to be of poor quality can open a dispute within six months from the date of payment.

The fact that security comes first in the company's policy also has one drawback - at any slightest suspicion, the account frozen for inspection, taking up to 180 days, as a result of which the account may be blocked forever and funds blocked for withdrawal.

If you have any questions, you can contact PayPal support for Russian speaking clients by number:

8 800 333 2676

The call to technical support is free for calls from mobile and landline phones.

Honest users do not have to worry, since the company most often requires a scan of their passport, registration or card linked to the account. For those who entered not fictitious data during registration, but real ones, this will not be a big problem.

A huge advantage when using the PayPal payment system is security of payment data. Unlike other systems, when paying for a product or service via PayPal, no electronic currency, A real money from an account or bank card. At the same time, the recipient of the transfer does not see the details of the card from which the funds were sent, and the buyer does not need to enter the card number and CVV code anywhere.

History of PayPal

A group of University of Illinois students, including a talented 23-year-old immigrant from the Ukrainian USSR Maximilian Levchin, having extensive experience in programming and startups, founded the company Confinity. The company planned to enter the service market money transfers with instant confirmation.

In 1998, the founders received interesting offer from the Internet company X.com and management decided to merge and create a new brand called PayPal.

Verbatim, PayPal(“paypal” or “paypal”) - means “ a friend who will help you pay". The abbreviation fully justifies its original purpose.

The newly created company set a course to ensure the financial activities of online trading platforms. The company has become the main partner of PayPal eBay, and already in the first months of operation, more than a million lots were offered to be paid through the new payment system.

In the third quarter of 2002, PayPal Inc. finally strengthened trust among auction users and eBay implemented PayPal purchase for an amount of more than 1 billion US dollars.

PayPal currently

The company has literally captured the global market for transfers and electronic payments. Every year the number of partners in different countries of the world is only growing, leaving competitors behind.

With the number of partners, the company’s turnover also grows, while safety requirements are becoming more strict.

  • PayPal is currently available in more than 200 countries worldwide
  • Sellers can receive funds from buyers in 98 world currencies
  • Service services are available in English, Spanish, Arabic, Russian and other languages

Payments and transfers within the system are carried out in 25 major currencies, and the sending currency may differ from the receiving currency. The exchange is made at the company's rate, which is usually worse than the official rate.

How PayPal works

Every new client systems should create your account, and the available services depend on the country of registration. Also, the fee for using the service is different.

Login in the system is user's email , so PayPal recommends using paid postal services when registering an account. The recommendation is not mandatory. After completing the registration, verification and confirmation procedure e-mail new the client will be able to fully use the service.

In addition to the country, the address of residence is also indicated. It is to this address that they will deliver purchases, paid via PayPal. The address can be changed, but in order to avoid blocking the account, it is not recommended to do this too often.

For most countries, the amount in the account is unlimited, but for certain countries, including Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, the maximum account balance is $500. There are no limits on the balance on a card connected to a PayPal account.

Using PayPal - free of charge. The commission is charged to the seller or recipient of the transfer and depends on the country of its registration.

PayPal's main income comes from currency exchange differences, as the company uses its own exchange rate. Banks or other financial institutions are not involved in the exchange.

Unused user funds are stored in an account with a partner bank, and everyone is insured against fraudulent use of funds.

In the United States, PayPal has been designated as a financial institution and is required to comply with all relevant laws. In Europe, the system has the status of a bank, which obliges it to carry out banking activities in accordance with the rules.

PayPal Customer Account Features

Each verified user is given the opportunity to:

  1. Send transfers other PayPal account holders.
  2. Make payments for purchases on partner sites.
  3. Pay for goods on eBay.

Moreover, payment is possible:

  • from PayPal account
  • from a linked and verified bank card
  • from a bank account

For clients from the USA, Russia and some other countries, it is possible to receive funds to an account or a bank account, which allows you to sell on eBay.

There are only 2 types of accounts available for opening:

  • Personal account. Regular account for individuals, to make payments online for goods and services. Also, transfers within Russia and the world are available. There are no restrictions on the amount of purchases or transfers for US registered customers. For Russia - no more than $500 per month.
  • Corporate account. An offer for business, regardless of the size of the company. You will be able to issue invoices to customers and receive payment for purchases on your site. In order to register a corporate account you will need a TIN.

How to use PayPal for Russian clients

In 2012 the company received a license non-bank credit organization, and from that moment on PayPal provided users from Russia with all available options.

Before this, Russians could only pay using their own account or pay for goods using a card. If for any reason the funds were returned to the account, then the money could not be withdrawn, but could only be used to pay with it again in some online store.

Registration procedure available in Russian from start to finish. Also, the entire account interface is completely Russified. If you have any difficulties, you can contact hotline for clients from Russia.

To withdraw funds to your account in Russian bank, you need to link your card. The procedure is quite simple and straightforward, and is described in the article.

In Russia, payments via PayPal are accepted by more than 1,000 partner stores, including Ozon.Travel, Lamoda and OK. The payment process is simple and is carried out in rubles.

You can top up your account even without linking a card through communication salons "Euroset" and "Svyaznoy", which is undoubtedly very convenient.

Silicon Valley Conversation:
- I built a business from scratch with my own hands and after 3 years I sold it for $50 million
- It’s okay, the main thing is don’t be discouraged, maybe the next project will be successful...

For us at Web-payment.ru, a project about payment systems with monitoring of exchangers, it is very interesting to watch the development of Elon Musk, he is engaged in fantastic projects and is especially inspiring that all this is thanks to Musk’s early success in the field of payment systems and Internet technologies. This is what created the conditions for him to become deeply involved in what he had a passion for all his life - science, engineering and space. In March 1999, he founded X.com, one of the first services to provide functionality for selling services on the Internet, which quickly became one of the leading financial companies on the Internet. In 2000, X.com acquired Confinity and became PayPal, the international leader in payment transfers. At PayPal, he served as President and Chief Operating Officer and was its largest shareholder until Ebay acquired PayPal in 2002 for $1.5 billion. Before joining PayPal, Musk co-founded Zip2, a company that created software for Internet services.

1995 - Zip2

Musk and his brother Kimbal founded the company Zip2, which specialized in software for news companies.
“I worked from morning to night. He lived in the same warehouse where he rented an office, and went to the locker rooms of the local stadium to shower. But I saved on renting an apartment, and in the first two most difficult years I kept the company afloat.”

In 1999, Zip2 was acquired by Compaq for $307 million. Musk received 7% of the sale ($22 million). “After Compaq acquired my brainchild, it merged with Altavista,” comments Elon.

1998 - Confinity

Confinity started in December 1998 as a cryptography company for Palm (cryptography is one of Max Levchin's skills). Max Levchin developed an encryption application. It used infrared rays to transfer identification information from one Palm device to another.


(pictured: 1999, the Confinity company creates software for PalmPilot. Peter Thiel is in the second row from the left in a blue shirt, behind him is Max Levchin in glasses and a white shirt)

1999 - X.com

In March 1999, Elon Musk co-founded X.com

2000 - X.com buys Confinity

In 2000, Confinity was acquired, one of whose branches was called PayPal. Both systems (X.com and PayPal) were engaged in providing personal electronic money transfers via email.


(pictured: Peter Thiel and Elon Musk)

From March to October 2000, Elon Musk served as CEO of PayPal. Peter Thiel became CEO in October.

2002 - sale to eBay

In October 2002, PayPal was acquired by eBay for $1.5 billion.

A few reasons why Elon Musk should be considered a full-fledged co-founder of PayPal (without any downplaying the roles of Max Levchin and Peter Thiel):

1. As David Sachs (PayPal's chief operating officer until it was sold to eBay) told the LA Times, it was Elon Musk who came up with the idea of ​​a "viral" growth engine.

2. The business model of charging only large sellers, rather than buyers or small merchants, was developed by Elon Musk and other X.com executives. By applying this model, PayPal does not lose any profits.

3. A large number of valuable employees came from X.com

more details

  • Roelof Botha. He was studying financial management and the external cost structure of capital. While CFO, he led PayPal through a very difficult public offering. He is now employed by Sequoia. In addition, he is one of the founders of the notorious YouTube.
  • Amy Rowe Klement ran a diverse group of services at PayPal until 2006.
  • Julie Anderson Ankenbrandt and Sal Giambanco (still VP of HR at PayPal). They managed to create a customer support and fraud investigation team from scratch. Their group numbered hundreds of employees by the summer of 2000, when Elon Musk was still general director. Without them, PayPal would be mired in a sea of ​​online fraud and customer lawsuits.
  • Sanjay Bhargava, former CitiBank employee. He developed the world's first cheap way identification of bank accounts. This was an extremely necessary factor for further work PayPal business models.
  • Jeremy Stoppelman, worked as PayPal's vice president of engineering until the summer of 2003. He went to Harvard Business School and then became one of the founders of Yelp.

4. X.com (X) had more employees, more user accounts, and a growth rate that also exceeded Confinity's (but had more eBay users).

5. Elon Musk was CEO and chairman of X/PayPal from January 1999 to October 2000, just over half of the joint venture's lifespan before it was agreed to be sold to eBay in June 2002. Musk has also been on the board of directors throughout the company's existence. Elon managed the joint venture from April 2000 to October 2000, that is, 7 months. This was the time when X.com/PayPal (called X until 2001) became the leader in e-mail payments. This was facilitated by a “viral” growth model, a calculated business model, growth from 60 employees to several hundred, the emergence of a customer service and anti-fraud center, support debit cards, supporting a money market fund, the foundation was also laid for worldwide service and acceptance of various currencies.

6. By the time Peter Thiel became CEO of X/PayPal in late October 2000, the company was essentially what it is today.

7. When PayPal was sold to eBay, Elon Musk was its largest shareholder.

Elon Musk says: “It is worth saying that there is no significant animosity or rivalry between Peter Thiel and Max Levchin. The only negative thing was related to a book called “The PayPal Wars”, written by the smarmy fool Eric Jackson. Peter Thiel volunteered to sponsor him and helped publish the book. However, in Peter's defense, it can be said that he had absolutely no idea that the book would turn out so terrible. He personally apologized to me at David Sachs's house."


(pictured: 2002, Peter Thiel and Max Levchin a few seconds after the end of the auction. The initial share price was $13, the final price was $20. PayPal held an initial public offering a month and a half before the sale to eBay)

What now?

And Musk continues to think “about what problems the world and humanity will have to solve in the future” and founded SpaceX (2002), Tesla Motors (2003),