• PayPal pledges USD 100M to fuel innovation, support entrepreneurs, and drive inclusive growth across the Middle East and Africa.
• The investment will fund startups through PayPal Ventures, minority stakes, acquisitions, and technology to scale local businesses and expand digital access.
• Announcement follows PayPal’s Dubai hub launch, building on investments in Tabby, Paymob, and Stitch to boost regional digital commerce.

PayPal

PayPal Holdings, Inc., the online payment system,  announced a commitment to invest USD 100 million throughout the Middle East and Africa. With this investment, it aims to fuel innovation, support entrepreneurs, and drive inclusive economic growth in one of the world’s fastest-growing digital commerce regions.

It aims to deploy this investment through a mix of minority investments, acquisitions, PayPal Ventures funding, people, and technology deployments. With this, it seeks to help local businesses scale, and unlock new opportunities for innovators. Furthermore, it also aims to bring millions more consumers and communities into the digital economy.

“By dedicating a $100 million investment to this region over the coming years, we’re investing in the technologies, partnerships, and solutions that will help entrepreneurs scale faster, expand their reach beyond borders, and unlock new opportunities for growth in the digital economy,”  said Alex Chriss, President and CEO, PayPal.

Regional Presence

This announcement comes after the April launch of PayPal’s first regional hub in Dubai. It is designed to deliver global commerce capabilities to the region. This is through providing businesses of all sizes with frictionless payments, robust security, and greater access to international markets.

“This commitment underscores our dedication to expanding PayPal’s presence in the Middle East and Africa and our focus is to build stronger connections between local businesses and the global marketplace,” said Otto Williams, Senior Vice President, Regional Head and General Manager of PayPal Middle East and Africa. 

This commitment also builds on PayPal Ventures’ existing investments in some of the region’s most promising startups. Moreover, this includes Tabby, Paymob, and Stitch, which are part of PayPal’s mission to shape the future of digital commerce.