PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: PYPL) is in the spotlight on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, after the payments giant disclosed a major strategic move: it has submitted applications to create “PayPal Bank,” a proposed Utah-chartered industrial loan company (ILC) designed to expand lending—especially to small businesses—and to introduce interest-bearing savings products backed by FDIC insurance eligibility if regulators approve the plan. [1]
The bank charter push is landing in a market that’s already been debating PayPal’s longer-term growth story and turnaround trajectory—making today’s development a meaningful new catalyst for PYPL stock into 2026.
PayPal stock price today: how PYPL is trading on Dec. 16, 2025
As of the latest available trading update (Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025 at 19:38 UTC), PYPL traded around $61.25, with an intraday range roughly $60.74 to $62.15 and a market cap near $64.1 billion.
In early market reaction to the bank news, Reuters reported PayPal shares rose about 1.8% to $61.84, as investors digested the potential business implications of becoming a regulated deposit-taking institution via an ILC structure. [2]
The big headline driving PayPal stock today: “PayPal Bank” applications
What PayPal announced
PayPal said it has submitted applications to the Utah Department of Financial Institutions and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to establish PayPal Bank, structured as a Utah-chartered industrial loan company. [3]
If approved, PayPal expects the new bank to support:
- More efficient U.S. small-business lending
- Interest-bearing savings accounts
- FDIC insurance eligibility for customer deposits at PayPal Bank (subject to approval)
- Potentially direct membership with U.S. card networks to complement existing processing and settlement relationships [4]
PayPal also named Mara McNeill—previously President & CEO of Toyota Financial Savings Bank—as the proposed bank’s president. [5]
Why PayPal is making this move now
PayPal has been a lender to merchants for years. The company says that since 2013 it has provided access to more than $30 billion in loans and working capital to over 420,000 business accounts worldwide—and that PayPal Bank would help it serve U.S. small businesses more efficiently while reducing reliance on third parties. [6]
In PayPal CEO Alex Chriss’s words, “Securing capital remains a significant hurdle” for small businesses—positioning the bank plan as both a growth initiative and an operational upgrade. [7]
Why a PayPal bank charter matters for investors
PayPal’s core business has long been framed as “payments + value-added financial services.” A bank charter—depending on what regulators permit—could influence unit economics, customer trust, and strategic control in several ways.
1) Potential funding advantage for lending
A key strategic appeal of an ILC structure is the possibility of funding certain loan products more directly with deposits—rather than relying as heavily on partner banks and other intermediaries.
American Banker notes that payment companies have increasingly pursued industrial loan banks partly to reduce reliance on partner banks, and to potentially lower costs tied to “sponsorship” models (though the benefits and regulatory obligations vary by structure and approvals). [8]
2) FDIC insurance could change how consumers view PayPal and Venmo balances
The Washington Post highlighted a long-running consumer concern: many users are wary of keeping large balances on fintech platforms—PayPal and PayPal-owned Venmo included—because the funds are not federally insured in the way traditional bank deposits are. An approved PayPal Bank charter would make deposit insurance eligibility part of the story, potentially lifting consumer confidence in keeping money inside PayPal’s ecosystem. [9]
3) More direct connections to payment rails (in theory)
PayPal’s release indicates PayPal Bank would seek direct membership with U.S. card networks to complement its existing banking relationships. Banking Dive similarly reported PayPal emphasized those new network connections would “complement” existing relationships—suggesting PayPal is aiming for more optionality rather than a full replacement of current partners. [10]
4) A more complex regulatory and risk profile
A charter also introduces real tradeoffs: more regulatory oversight, compliance requirements, and governance expectations—plus the need to manage deposit, liquidity, and credit risk within a bank framework. The Washington Post also cited concerns from a former Federal Reserve official that expanding fintech and crypto-style charters could increase regulatory exposure, even as some argue risks can be mitigated by limiting certain privileges. [11]
The broader policy and industry backdrop
Today’s PayPal news is also part of a wider trend: fintech and digital-asset firms seeking deeper integration into the U.S. banking system.
- Reuters noted PayPal’s bank push follows recent preliminary approvals by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) for firms including Ripple and Circle to set up national trust banks. [12]
- The Washington Post reported the OCC approved preliminary charters for several digital-asset platforms and framed the overall moment as part of a broader push to ease banking rules. [13]
- The Financial Times reported PayPal already operates with a banking license in Luxembourg, underscoring that the company has experience operating within regulated banking frameworks outside the U.S. [14]
Today’s forecasts: where analysts see PYPL stock going next
Even with today’s positive catalyst, PayPal remains a heavily debated stock. Forecasts vary depending on the dataset, methodology, and how analysts weigh growth vs. margin expansion vs. competitive pressure.
Reuters / LSEG snapshot (as cited today)
Reuters reported that (based on LSEG-compiled data) 16 of 44 brokerages rate PYPL “buy” or “strong buy,”25 rate it “hold,” and 3 rate it “sell/strong sell,” with a median price target of $76. [15]
Consensus targets from major aggregators (today’s reference points)
- MarketBeat shows a consensus rating of Hold and an average 12‑month price target around $78.97 (with a low around $56 and high near $101). [16]
- TipRanks frames Wall Street as “sidelined,” citing 20 Holds, eight Buys, three Sells and an average target around $78.45 (about 29% upside from then-current levels in its calculation). [17]
- Zacks lists a target range with a low around $56 and a high around $105. [18]
Takeaway: Across multiple sources, the “center of gravity” in published price targets clusters in the mid-to-high $70s, but with meaningful dispersion—reflecting uncertainty about PayPal’s growth pace and competitive positioning.
The near-term debate: bullish “cash flow story” vs. growth skepticism
Alongside the straight news flow, December 16 also brought fresh commentary and analysis framing PayPal in very different ways.
Bullish angle: cash flow and valuation
A Barchart analysis published today argues PayPal’s free cash flow profile and margins could support meaningful upside, describing a scenario where improved cash generation could justify a higher valuation over the next year (the piece discusses a potential value case in the low $70s). [19]
Seeking Alpha also published a bullish take today, calling PayPal “underappreciated” and pointing to strategy shifts (including moving away from lower-margin activity), plus Venmo and BNPL momentum, and shareholder returns. [20]
Bearish / cautious angle: branded checkout growth and slower turnaround
On the cautious side, Investing.com reported that Compass Point lowered its PayPal price target to $56 while keeping a Sell rating, citing signs of slowing Branded Checkout growth in Q4 2025 based on intra-quarter commentary. [21]
And earlier this month, Investor’s Business Daily reported JPMorgan downgraded PayPal, expressing concerns that the turnaround under CEO Alex Chriss is taking longer to show up in results. [22]
What to watch next: the catalysts that could move PYPL after today
1) The regulatory timeline and scope of approval
The market’s “next question” after today’s headline is straightforward: Will regulators approve PayPal Bank—and if so, with what constraints? The approval process, capital requirements, governance expectations, and allowed activities will matter as much as the headline itself. [23]
2) Small business lending performance and credit quality
If PayPal expands lending more aggressively, investors will likely focus on:
- Loan growth vs. profitability
- Credit performance through an economic cycle
- Funding costs and deposit stability
PayPal is leaning on its long history in merchant financing (the company cites $30B+ in cumulative originations since 2013), but scaling a bank model can change both the upside and the risk distribution. [24]
3) Next earnings date (currently estimated for early February 2026)
Earnings calendars currently estimate PayPal’s next report in early February 2026—for example Feb. 3, 2026 on Nasdaq and Yahoo Finance’s calendar—but these dates can be “estimated” until the company confirms. [25]
That next earnings update is likely to be the first major checkpoint where management addresses:
- Progress on the bank charter process
- Any updates on branded checkout trends
- Margin trajectory and capital return priorities
Bottom line for PayPal stock on Dec. 16, 2025
PayPal stock is reacting positively today because a U.S. bank charter bid—especially through an industrial loan company structure—signals a potential shift from “payments platform” to a more vertically integrated financial services model. That could strengthen PayPal’s ability to fund and grow small-business lending, expand consumer savings products, and reduce dependency on third-party banks—if regulators approve the plan and the economics work as intended. [26]
But Wall Street’s forecasts still reflect a split view: price targets imply upside from current levels in many datasets, yet recent downgrades and concerns about checkout growth underscore that PayPal still has to prove durable re-acceleration and execution. [27]
References
1. newsroom.paypal-corp.com, 2. www.tradingview.com, 3. newsroom.paypal-corp.com, 4. newsroom.paypal-corp.com, 5. newsroom.paypal-corp.com, 6. newsroom.paypal-corp.com, 7. newsroom.paypal-corp.com, 8. www.americanbanker.com, 9. www.washingtonpost.com, 10. newsroom.paypal-corp.com, 11. www.washingtonpost.com, 12. www.tradingview.com, 13. www.washingtonpost.com, 14. www.ft.com, 15. www.tradingview.com, 16. www.marketbeat.com, 17. www.tipranks.com, 18. www.zacks.com, 19. www.barchart.com, 20. seekingalpha.com, 21. www.investing.com, 22. www.investors.com, 23. www.washingtonpost.com, 24. newsroom.paypal-corp.com, 25. www.nasdaq.com, 26. newsroom.paypal-corp.com, 27. www.tradingview.com
