How PayPal's CEO is Setting a Disciplined Growth Agenda

PayPal has completed a planned leadership reset, appointing Enrique Lores as President and CEO from 1 March 2026 after almost five years on the board and a stint as chair since July 2024. Jamie Miller, Chief Financial and Operating Officer, served as interim CEO during the transition and has resumed her role. The board has also named David W. Dorman as independent chair as the company targets sharper operational performance in a competitive payments market.

Enrique Lores, President and CEO of PayPal, says: “As a member of PayPal’s Board of Directors for the last five years, I’ve had a front-row seat to PayPal’s strengths: our global scale, trusted brand, powerful two-sided platform of consumers and merchants and most importantly, our people.

“We have significant strengths, but we have not executed to our full potential. Now is the time to turn those strengths into sharper focus, and stronger, more consistent results.”​

The board has framed Enrique’s appointment as a move to accelerate performance following its evaluation of PayPal’s strategy and execution. The leadership reshuffle consolidates governance around a chair–CEO split, with Dorman taking the independent chair role and Jamie returning to the combined finance and operations brief after stewarding the handover.

A playbook from HP

Before taking the helm at PayPal, Enrique spent more than six years as CEO of HP, where he led a strategic transition that broadened the company beyond its PC and printing roots into subscriptions and AI‑enabled technologies.

He was also the architect of the separation of HP and HPE to improve agility, and under his tenure HP delivered six consecutive quarters of revenue growth.

That period emphasised operating discipline, simplification of cost structures and a focus on long‑term innovation.

Enrique says: "I think PayPal has a great future. We need to improve execution and make more progress in the initiatives that we have in place. And this is going to be my goal going into the next year.”

He has acknowledged the pace of change in financial services and the need for clear priorities, disciplined delivery and innovation that improves customer experience.

“The payments industry is changing faster than ever, driven by new technologies, evolving regulations, an increasingly competitive landscape and the rapid acceleration of AI that is reshaping commerce daily," Enrique says.

“Over the coming weeks, I look forward to spending time with customers, partners and teams globally. ​Listening and learning will be essential as we move forward.”

An orderly handover

Following Alex Chriss’ departure as President and CEO, PayPal has highlighted his role in monetisation of Venmo and modernising the PayPal platform. Alex Chriss, former President and CEO of PayPal, says: “Now is the right time to make a transition to a seasoned leader who can take the company through its next phase of transformation.

“I have enjoyed a great working relationship with Enrique, and I am certain he is the right person to meet that challenge.”

Although PayPal’s shares fell 20% in February, the company points to Enrique’s record at HP as evidence of his ability to steer complex organisations through change while sharpening financial and operational discipline.