Ebay to ditch PayPal

Ebay, which separated from PayPal in 2015, plans to ditch it entirely. By 2020, Ebay says, most of its transactions will be handled by Adyen, a Netherlands-based payment processor. PayPal will remain a checkout option until at least 2023.

The announcement surprised some investors, who expected the companies to announce an extension to their operating agreement. PayPal has played an integral role in processing payments on EBay for 15 years and offers credit products that help EBay shoppers buy more goods.

PayPal has always been hostile to sellers, who feel forced into accepting it because it's where the customers are, because it lets them avoid the headache of merchant credit card services, and because it doesn't send W2s. Ebay, on the other hand, is the internet capital of technical debt, with the digital equivalent of lead paint peeling through every layer of latex applied atop it. But times are changing!