PayPal wants to set up a bank to help support small businesses

• PayPal Bank could be the company's next move in the US, subject to approvals
• SMB loans and interest-bearing savings accounts are in the pipeline
• Former Toyota finance exec appointed as the Bank's President

PayPal has started the formal process to open "PayPal Bank" which it hopes will improve small business lending in the US and reduce reliance on third-party banks.

In a press release, the company confirmed it had "submitted applications to the Utah Department of Financial Institutions and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation."

To support its case, PayPal highlighted that, since 2013, it has provided over $30 billion in loans and working capital to more than 420,000 business accounts worldwide, thus a PayPal Bank would fit in quite nicely.

PayPal Bank could be next, subject to approvals

"Securing capital remains a significant hurdle for small businesses striving to grow and scale," said CEO Alex Chriss noted. The company hopes a self-branded bank would strengthen its business, improve efficiency and open up new economic opportunities across the US.

The bank is also expected to offer interest-bearing savings accounts to customers, and to seek direct membership with US card networks "to complement processing and settlement activities through existing banking relationships."

Former Toyota Financial Savings Bank CEO Mara McNeill has been named as PayPal Bank's President.

The application will be subject to regulatory approval, however investors seem to be happy, with shares rising around 1.5% in extended trading following the announcement.

This isn't the only news that PayPal has announced about an expansion of its payment networks. Recently in the UK, the company declared it would be bringing credit cards, debit cards and loyalty points to British customers.

At the time, Consumer Group General Manager Diego Scotti declared the company had responded to customer feedback to launch the new products.

"We have returned the company to growth and are on pace for 6% to 7% transaction margin dollar growth in 2025 when excluding interest on customer balances," Chriss said, speaking about the company's most recent quarterly earnings. "This is a stronger company today than we were two years ago."

PayPal is also planning to adopt agentic AI more broadly, partnering with companies like Google, OpenAI and Perplexity.

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