PayPal introduces digital

                                          PayPal introduces digital Foreign Inward Remittance Advice

Eases the process of receiving international payments for MSME exporters and freelancers

 

• Automated process to obtain a single digital monthly FIRA directly from the merchants PayPal Business account
• FIRA’s to be made available to sellers at no cost

 

PayPal, a global leader in digital payments, introduced an automated process to obtain the monthly Foreign Inward Remittance Advice (FIRA). At a zero-cost, PayPal merchants will now be able to download their monthly digital FIRA issued by the bank by simply logging into their PayPal account. The fully automated process will not require sellers to place manual and individual requests, thereby reducing the time taken to file the paperwork. The initiatives are aimed to empower Indian MSME exporters to seamlessly grow their business internationally.

 

Foreign Inward Remittance Advice is a document that acts as a proof for all inward remittances and payments received from abroad. This is issued by banks in India and is required by exporters of all sizes individual or a business, such as a limited company, partnership firm, sole proprietorship firm etc. It is a proof of receipt of export proceeds in foreign currency received from outside the country. ​

 

Nath Parameshwaran, Director, Corporate Affairs, PayPal India said “The pandemic has significantly accelerated digital adoption especially amongst small sellers and freelancers. At PayPal, we are constantly innovating to help these merchants who form the backbone of our economy and grow India’s B2C exports. With PayPal, these small exporters have access to 200 markets and a strong consumer base of over 350 million. In 2020, despite the pandemic headwinds, we enabled exports worth INR 10,000 crores for 3.6 lakh small exporters with a majority driven by tribal, artisan and women led enterprises. A zero-cost, digital FIRA process not only reduces time, saves money and removes friction but also eliminates the need to visit branches and thereby reducing the chances of the COVID-19 infection.”

 

Previously, Indian sellers and freelancers had to send a manual request to PayPal’s partner bank and also pay a fee for the service. The bank would then issue FIRA as a physical statement which could take upto 10 days and required the seller to visit the bank to collect the same. PayPal’s monthly digital FIRA solution will allow merchants to download the FIRA from their PayPal account. The sellers will be notified via an email once the FIRA is made available. The simplified process also enables Indian sellers to apply for bill closure and get tax benefits at a much faster rate.

 

PayPal has been committed to building an inclusive economy and climate impact. The revised FIRA process is aimed at empowering small businesses to conduct business with international customers, without incurring additional costs to obtain the document. The paperless process is also a step in the direction towards PayPal’s mission to reach net zero emissions by 2040.

PayPal partners with FlexiLoans.com to offer

 PayPal partners with FlexiLoans.com to offer
MSMEs and freelancers’ collateral-free term loans

Partnership enables cross-border trade to foster growth

• Provides borrowers with access to collateral-free term loans from Rs 50,000 up to Rs 1,00,00,000
• Seamless end-to-end online process with fast approvals

PayPal, a global leader in digital payments, today entered into a partnership with FlexiLoans.com, a leading digital lending platform to provide freelancers, women entrepreneurs, sole proprietors, and MSME’s with collateral-free business loans. Through this partnership, PayPal further reiterates its commitment to democratize access to financial services by bringing its global best practices and credit solution capabilities to Indian merchants who sell cross border using PayPal. PayPal with FlexiLoans.com will aim to offer MSME’s with working capital for business expansion, purchasing stock, inventory, and other business-related expenditures.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has been widespread, bringing economic strain to small businesses, freelancers and entrepreneurs who are facing myriad challenges to recover and sustain their businesses.  The partnership aligns with PayPal’s mission to provide innovative credit solutions and will enable borrowers to access term loans from Rs 50,000 up to Rs 10,000,000 through a fast, hassle-free process that requires minimum documentation to merchants across 1500+ cities and towns in India. The loan tenure will range from 6-36 months.

Commenting on the partnership and launch of the credit solution, Anupam Pahuja, Vice President – India, South East Asia, Middle East & Africa, PayPal said, “Economic activity across India has been deeply affected by the Coronavirus pandemic, and it is now when our MSME’s and freelancer community require solutions to kickstart business activity. Accessing capital through traditional channels has always been a challenge for most small businesses.  Our partnership with FlexiLoans.com and combined expertise will enable us to reduce the existing gap in accessing credit, while accelerating growth for cross border selling and fast tracking the Vocal for Local and Digital India vision.”

“We are committed to offer high quality lending solutions and experiences to Indian SME ecosystems and this partnership is a significant step forward, says, Abhishek Kothari, Co-Founder FlexiLoans.com. “With our advanced Data science models and deep expertise in assessing millions of MSMEs with digital footprints, we are extremely excited to partner with Paypal, the Global Leader in payments and bring the COVID impacted MSMEs back to growth and harness the new opportunities.”

PayPal re-iterates commitment to India

 PayPal re-iterates commitment to India; plans to hire over 1000 engineers across the India Development Centers in 2021

Hiring will take place across software development, product development, data science, risk analytics and business analytics

PayPal, a global leader in digital payments today announced that it will hire 1,000 engineers for its India Development Centers across Bangalore, Chennai, and Hyderabad over the course of the year. Technology talent will be hired across software, product development, data science, risk analytics and business analytics streams at entry, mid-level, and senior roles. PayPal India also announced its plans for campus hires from top engineering colleges across India.

The pandemic has accelerated the shift towards digital payments and highlighted the benefits of adopting a digital first approach. PayPal’s products and services have become even more relevant now and hence the need to focus on technology innovation across AI/ML, Data Science, Risk and Security, Customer Experience and other key areas

Commenting on the announcement, Guru Bhat, VP Omni Channel & Customer Success, GM – PayPal India said, “Our India Technology Centers are the largest for PayPal outside of the U.S. and play a pivotal role in enabling us to constantly innovate and remain ahead of the curve. As digital payments move from a nice to have to an essential service, we are focused on investing in and nurturing world class technology talent to continue to offer products and services that meet the needs of our growing base of consumers and merchants.”

The India Technology Centers currently employs over 4500 people across the three centres who a play a critical role in enabling a safe and seamless payments experience