PayPal eyes slice of $100bn data-driven ad business

PayPal has become the latest financial services giant to launch a data-driven advertising business, tapping into its banks of first-party information to help brands target its millions of customers based on their purchasing behaviour.

The move follows a global study by Criteo, which predicted that the exponential growth of retail media will create opportunities for other commerce-led vertical sectors to open up their digital assets to advertisers, including the likes of airline, hotel, and financial services brands. It claimed the sector could be worth up to $100bn.

Initially launching in the US, through its Venmo division, the company will offer decades’ of data on individual purchases and transactions.

According to PayPal’s most recent financial earnings report, the company has more than 427 million customers and processed 6.5 million transactions in the first quarter of 2024.

It has already launched an ‘Advanced Offers’ scheme for merchants, which combines its own data with AI to target specific users with discounts and offers.

JPMorgan, which has 80 million customers and more than $2.4trillion in deposits, launched a similar scheme in April. It helps brands target specific subsets of shoppers with discounts and deals through its Chase Offers programme.

The Criteo report, which was published in February, revealed that 45% of brands and agencies said they planned to meet 2024 objectives by looking for opportunities to invest in non-retail verticals that offer similar first-party data and closed-loop features to retail media.

At the time, Criteo chief revenue officer Brian Gleason said: “Advertisers, publishers and retailers want to make full use of this new media. The easier it is for all parties to successfully buy and sell retail media, the faster we reach the potential of this $100bn market opportunity.”