PayPal is going the way of Amazon and looking for a golden vein in digital advertising

After several years of stagnation, when PayPal struggled with slow growth and declining investor confidence, a major turnaround is coming. The fintech that helped define digital payments is launching its own PayPal Ads Manager ad networkopening the door to a whole new business. The goal is not just to streamline its partners' marketing, but to create an ecosystem where even small businesses can generate ad revenue just like the tech giants. The move represents a change in philosophy - from a payment service provider to a platform that monetizes data, traffic and user interaction.

The new model taps into one of the fastest growing segments of the digital economy. Retail media advertising, i.e. advertising directly within e-commerce ecosystems, is one of the most profitable sectors with average margins of over 60%. Analysts expect its volume to exceed 160 billion dollars. Amazon, Walmart or Alibaba have already found their second pillar of growth in this space - and PayPal is now joining…