PAUL PARISI – President, Paypal Canada
Paul is a result-oriented Canadian leader with a strong track record of more than 20 years in the payments industry. He is focused on driving the next phase of growth for the company and its 7.1 million active customers in Canada.
Paul plays a pivotal role in identifying strategic partnerships and bringing payment innovations to the Canadian market. He leads his team to help more than 250,000 Canadian small businesses and large retailers grow their sales locally and internationally. An engaging speaker with a passion for innovation, entrepreneurship, and leadership, Paul brings a unique perspective on how financial services companies can collaborate to make money more accessible to people and businesses.
Prior to PayPal, Paul was vice president and general manager of global commercial payments at American Express Canada. During his tenure at American Express, he developed and drove business strategy for corporate payments and small business services and held several key leadership positions across sales, account management, e-procurement, and travel. A global sales leader, Paul has lived and worked in Canada, the U.S. and the U.K.
“Paul has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Guelph”
1. As President of PayPal Canada, what are some of the initiatives you have implemented that benefits small business owners?
Helping small businesses survive and thrive is at the core of what we do at PayPal. We offer our business customers Seller Protection at no extra charge. That protects business owners from chargebacks, reversals or any associated fees. We offer digital invoicing solutions that help customers keep close track of their sales. Last year, we launched a new shipping solution in Canada that will save small business owners up to 75 per cent in shipping costs. This is incredibly important because high shipping costs is a major hurdle Canadian sellers face. It’s also the number one reason online shoppers abandon their shopping carts. We searched long and hard for a solution to that problem and found one that helps business owners overcome these obstacles and grow their business.
2. With the new opportunities that technology is creating, more and more businesses are turning towards e-commerce. How is PayPal helping entrepreneurs understand and embrace e-commerce? What would you say is the biggest challenge that entrepreneurs face when it comes to e-commerce and how can PayPal help them overcome these challenges?
At a time when consumers are hesitant to shop in store, we are educating businesses about the benefits of online commerce and providing them with the tools they need to attract new customers, drive sales and customer loyalty to in turn, drive digital spend globally.
We offer PayPal Business Loan which enables Canadian small business owners to easily access loans of $5,000 to $100,000 at competitive prices so they can better manage their cashflow and access capital necessary to remain operational.
Additionally, eligible PayPal purchases are protected by PayPal Seller Protection – combining 24/7 monitoring, secure technology, fraud protection, and dispute resolution and other tools to keep you safe.
3. How is PayPal ensuring the security and confidentiality of its customers to avoid any privacy threats?
We know one of the greatest sources of stress right now is uncertainty. No one knows what the next day, week or month really holds for the world. PayPal has weathered storms like these before. In our over 20 years of business, we’ve been through the dot-com bust, recessions, natural catastrophes and more. We are a timetested and reliable partner and are committed to business owners.
At PayPal, trust, safety and security of our customers and data is in our DNA and at the very core of everything we do to build and maintain out network and 300 million plus customer base.
4. What are some of the strategies you use when it comes to identifying strategic partnerships and remaining innovative in the payments industry?
The way to look at this is to see what do your customers truly need and what gaps exist in what your business offers to them. The strategy here is you either build it, buy it or partner with someone. To meet a customer need, what’s critical is speed-to-market. When it comes to identifying a partner, find a partner who can not only bring the solution to market quickly but they should offer the same level of delivery standards as your company and brand.
5. How is PayPal serving small businesses in the time of COVID-19?
We are committed to helping small businesses who are facing difficult times right now. PayPal shared a number of relief measures to help its more than 24 million merchants around the world impacted by COVID-19. These measures include a series of fee waivers and payment deferrals for business loans. A summary of the efforts to assist business customers include:
• Business loans and cash advances: Customers can request to defer repayment, with no additional cost.
• Chargebacks fees: PayPal is waiving chargeback fees for merchants if their customer files a dispute with their credit card issuer through April 30, 2020.
• Instant funds transfer: In partnership with Visa, PayPal is waiving fees on instant withdrawals of money from a PayPal business account to a bank account through April 30, 2020.
• Customer disputes: PayPal is extending the window in which merchants must respond to a customer dispute from 10 to 20 days through April 30, 2020.
We are working to find new ways to meet your needs and will draw on our technology and resources to make a difference for you. Please visit the PayPal Newsroom Hub to find helpful resources to help you navigate our products and tools during this unprecedented time.
6. On a final note, how do you see the future of payment industries and how do you believe technology will impact the e-commerce and payments industry?
Given everything we’re seeing right now – the future of payments and commerce is digital. Digital-payment services are facing a surge in demand as the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in people shopping online for groceries, essentials, medicines, home office equipment, workout equipment and gear, audiobooks and movies and everything in between.
In Italy, one of the first countries to order residents to stay home in a bid to prevent the COVID-19 from spreading, e-commerce transactions soared 81% since the end of February, according to estimates by McKinsey & Co.
Our mission at PayPal has never been more critical as we help sellers and retailers of all sizes figure out how to get online and start selling online.
