PayPal shuts down its services in Russia citing Ukraine aggression

PayPal Holdings Inc. shut down its services early on Saturday in Russia, joining many financial and tech companies in suspending operations there after the invasion of Ukraine.

"Under the current circumstances, we are suspending PayPal services in Russia," President and Chief Executive Dan Schulman said in a statement. He added that the company "stands with the international community in condemning Russia's violent military aggression in Ukraine."

A company spokesperson said PayPal will support withdrawals "for some time, ensuring that account balances are dispersed in line with applicable laws and regulations."

PayPal, which had only allowed cross-border transactions by users in Russia, stopped accepting new users on Wednesday. 

Ukrainian government officials called on PayPal to quit Russia and help them with fundraising.

PayPal said on Friday that "since the beginning of the invasion, PayPal has helped raise over $150 million for charities supporting response efforts in Ukraine, one of the largest efforts we've seen in such a short period of time."

PayPal's suspension in Russia also applies to its money transfer tool Xoom. Rivals Wise and Remitly earlier suspended some services in Russia.