Did you know that the highest skyscraper in the world is in Dubaï? That the richest man on earth is Mexican? That the biggest plane is manufactured in Russia? That Macao is now the #1 gaming place before Las Vegas? That the average age in Canada is 40, when it is 26 in India? That in 2020, 61% of the world's wealth will come from emerging markets? 

At PayPal, we know that the future growth of the global economy will come from these new international markets. We have been expanding our global footprint and deepening our service offering internationally. It is a key driver for our business.  We already operate in more than 190 markets, and it is a reality for the last 4 quarters now, that our international business represents more than 50% of our revenue, with a YoY growth of 26% in Q4 2012.

Therefore, we are in a unique position in the industry to see how fast these new markets are growing. We are also in a unique position to work with the local ecosystem to bring safe and convenient payments to local users – both consumers and merchants. 

In this global environment, Russia is definitely one of the biggest growth opportunities for PayPal (along with Brazil, India and China), with 40 million online shoppers and already more than $13 billion spent online in 2012.  

As is our experience everywhere else in the world, expanding our domestic business in a new market requires a lot of preparation, attention and investment. We need to learn from the local ecosystem (consumers, merchants, banks, etc) and also work closely with local regulators. This is particularly relevant in the field of payment services and PayPal processed more than $118 billion globally in 2012. Russia is no exception.

As required by the National Payment System Law, we officially applied for a Non-Banking Credit Institution license (NBCI) in Russia. The Central Bank of Russia has been a key stakeholder and enabler from the outset, actively helping us to fulfill all requirements. We're excited that they approved our application, which is a major step in this process but we are still just at the beginning of our journey in Russia

Entering a new country with a relevant business offer, a strong consumer value proposition and close relations with regulators is key for success. This has been our experience for over 14 years.

We're confident that the local regulators will continue to be our highly valued partners as we develop our payment services for the Russian market. 

More to come in Russia. We will keep you posted.