PayPal launches partial services in Russia

MOSCOW, RUSSIA: PayPal, a leading global online payment system, has launched partial services for Russian Internet users, permitting them to pay for their online purchases and put money on their personal accounts in the US.

Russia is a very important electronic commerce market, Russian business daily Vedomosti quoted PayPal spokesman Marc Jaugey as saying.

Russian clients can only put money in accounts in American banks, a difficult task for Russians as US banks require proof of local residence or a social security number. But Jaugey said PayPal and the Russian government were discussing ways to allow Russian consumers to transfer money to local bank accounts.

PayPal, owned by eBay, which partially launched its services in Russia in March, became available for Russian users Tuesday. PayPal has quietly put Russia on the list of countries, whose citizens are permitted to withdraw money from their PayPal accounts or a card.

PayPal was unavailable for immediate comment Thursday.