PayPal, the global digital commerce platform, has today opened a new hub in Dubai, which serves as the company’s first-ever regional headquarters in the Middle East and Africa. The Dubai Internet City site strengthens PayPal’s commitment to its customers and partners in the region and commitment to enabling millions more consumers and businesses to access the global digital economy.

PayPal’s expanded presence will bring global commerce capabilities to the region, including frictionless payments, robust security, and broader access to international payment networks to help large enterprises and small businesses sell across borders.

Speaking from the Dubai AI Festival 2025 today, Suzan Kereere, President of Global Markets at PayPal, said: “PayPal is uniquely positioned to bridge the gap between consumers and businesses for cross-border commerce, fostering growth in local economies. We proudly serve over 430 million customers worldwide today, and we hope to reach many more from our new regional hub for the Middle East and Africa. We want to empower businesses in this region to connect with our global consumers, while enabling consumers here to shop with confidence internationally.”

Suzan added, “As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms the way we shop and pay, PayPal is developing its next generation shopping experiences at speed, including smart wallets and agentic commerce. I cannot wait to take our customers and partners on this journey with us.”

The announcement comes on the back of a series of major merchant and partner deals PayPal has signed in the region in recent months.

Otto Williams, Senior Vice President, Regional Head and General Manager of PayPal Middle East and Africa, said, “Through strategic partnerships with banks, fintechs, telecommunications providers, and other commerce players, we can collectively expand access to the global digital economy. We are honored to already serve many of the largest online enterprises in the region across vital sectors like aviation, tourism, digital goods, and retail. With our new regional hub in Dubai, we are poised to achieve much more, particularly for small and medium-sized businesses, who we will equip with the tools to attract, convert and retain customers on a global scale.”