--- description: Find out why PayPal was selected for the inaugural list title: TIME100 Most Influential Companies 2021: PayPal image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt28ba48ab72cc7527/698a18e7656a3f1211bdb333/paypal-time100-companies.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Apr 26, 2021 # PayPal Untethering the digital wallet by [Eben Shapiro](/author/eben-shapiro/) ## Eben Shapiro Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Eben Shapiro is the former deputy editor of TIME  Dan Schulman, CEO of PayPal Dan Schulman, CEO of PayPalUlysses Ortega Cash is no longer king, and shying away from touching banknotes has benefited PayPal. The fintech giant—which does business in more than 200 countries, and deals in more than 100 currencies—had a record year as the pandemic drove shoppers from stores to buying goods on their phones and computers. In response to demand for germ-free payments, [PayPal](https://time.com/tag/paypal/ "undefined") launched QR codes in 28 global markets; it also helped move digital dinero into the mainstream by adding cryptocurrency services. In total, the firm, led by [CEO Dan Schulman](https://time.com/5957001/paypal-cryptocurrencty-bitcoin-dan-schulman/ "undefined")_,_ processed 15.4 billion payments last year, with a value of $936 billion. PayPal Is One of the 2021 TIME100 Most Influential Companies ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/time100-companies/5953654/paypal/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/time100-companies/5953654/paypal/"},"headline":"PayPal","datePublished":"2021-04-26T15:20:29.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-03T02:25:45.298Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/collections/time100-companies/5953654/paypal/","keywords":["Lists","franchise","TIME100 Companies"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt28ba48ab72cc7527/698a18e7656a3f1211bdb333/paypal-time100-companies.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eben Shapiro","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/eben-shapiro/"}],"creator":"Eben Shapiro","articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt28ba48ab72cc7527/698a18e7656a3f1211bdb333/paypal-time100-companies.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/time100-companies/5953654/paypal/","name":"PayPal"}}]}] ```