Source: Pixabay
It has been 20 years since PayPal went public through an IPO in 2002, and last year, the American fintech company was ranked 134th on the 2021 Fortune 500 list of the largest companies by revenue in the United States. Through various acquisitions, such as purchasing Bill Me Later, an online credit product that the company rebranded as PayPal Credit, and expanding its mobile app capabilities for Android and iOS, PayPal has become a staple in the online payments system market. Yet, the company’s success is not entirely down to its business model evolution. Some of it has to do with the widespread adoption of PayPal in other profitable industries, such as the online gambling market.
The Use of PayPal in Online Gambling
Online gambling has risen in popularity, and analysts project the global market will have a value of over $100 billion by 2026. For perspective, the global online casino industry had a value of around $66 billion in 2020. With the increasing number of player demographics entering the market, online casino operators have also shifted their business models to adapt to different customer needs and interests.
One of these interests is online payment systems. That is why dozens of online casinos have started to offer players the option to deposit and withdraw money using PayPal in addition to using traditional credit cards like MasterCard and Visa. This applies not just to online casinos that offer classic table games like poker and blackjack, but gamblers worldwide can also use PayPal as their primary payment method to play bingo online as well as video slots like Rainbow Riches, one of the most popular slot game franchises in the world.
This adoption of PayPal in industries like the online casino market has allowed the fintech company to reach a new audience, which, in any business, is crucial for maintaining a competitive edge. The global online payments market had a value of $6.75 trillion in 2021 and is expected to reach around $12 trillion by 2027 as more e-wallets and payments solutions enter the space. We can even argue that online casinos are also benefiting from this adoption of PayPal. This is because PayPal is one of the safest, fastest, and most secure payment services available, and this means gamblers do not have to worry when making deposits or withdrawals. This added security contributes to an online casino’s overall rating.
Source: Pixabay
What’s Next?
PayPal’s future growth plans are unclear, but we know the company has not slowed down in terms of innovation. For example, in 2021, the company launched a new consumer app covering cryptocurrency use cases. The app, dubbed a ‘super app’, includes a wallet that manages crypto payments. Interestingly, cryptocurrency payments have also been increasing in the online gambling industry.
Even though PayPal has been operating in the corporate world for decades, the company’s influence and power are only beginning. In part, this is because of PayPal’s business model, but it is also because of markets like the online casino industry adopting the technology.