PayPal was launched in 2000 after the internet financial services company X.com acquired Confinity, which had started the PayPal system two months before.
PayPal is a global e-commerce company that is an alternative to traditional payment methods. It facilitates money transfers and payments through the internet. Purchases can be made through a credit card or by transferring money from a bank account.
PayPal charges fees based on the purchase or transfer amount, the currency or currencies used, the country of origin, country of the recipient, the payment option, or the account type.
In 2002 eBay acquired PayPal and made it a wholly-owned subsidiary.
In March 2019, Fox News warned their viewers that PayPal had sided with the far left by discriminating which accounts they would keep and which were booted.
As of 2012, PayPal had over 100 million active accounts, in 26 currencies, with a payment volume processed of US$145 billion.