PayPal Officially Stops Service In Russia And Joins International Community To Help Ukraine

Paypal officially discontinues payment services in Russia, due to war invasion. (photo L doc. unsplash)

JAKARTA - International online payment company, PayPal Holdings Inc. announced that it has closed its services in Russia, on Saturday morning, March 5. They reason to see the current conditions and conditions in the country.

Paypal has also joined many other US financial and technology companies in suspending operations in Russia, after President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine.

"Under the current circumstances, we are suspending PayPal services in Russia," said President and Chief Executive Officer, Dan Schulman, in a statement. He added that the company "joins the international community in condemning Russia's violent military aggression in Ukraine."

A spokesperson for PayPal also said it would support withdrawing the service "for a certain period of time, ensuring that account balances are spread out in accordance with applicable laws and regulations."

PayPal, which previously only allowed cross-border transactions by users in Russia, stopped accepting new users in the country last Wednesday.

Ukrainian government officials have also asked PayPal to get out of Russia and help them with fundraising to challenge the invasion.

PayPal said Friday that "since the start of the invasion, PayPal has helped raise more than 150 million US dollars (IDR 2.1 trillion) for charities supporting the response effort in Ukraine, in what is one of the largest aid-raising efforts ever to take place in just a short time."

PayPal's suspension in Russia also applies to the Xoom money transfer tool. Rivals Wise and Remitly have previously suspended some services in Russia.