PayPal's Valentine's Day Survey Proves Money Still Can't Buy Love

Money Continues to Cause More Arguments Than Sex Among Couples in
the U.S. and UK
SAN JOSE, Calif.--(Business Wire)--Nearly 60 percent of young U.S. couples surveyed argue over money
at least once a month, according to PayPal's second annual "Can't Buy
Me Love" survey. Meanwhile, issues relating to work and household
responsibilities top the list for couples in the UK. In both
countries, sex ranked low on the list of couples' common arguments,
coming in fifth. The research, conducted by Ipsos, examined how
personal finance issues affect couples and singles in the U.S. and UK.

"The 'Can't Buy Me Love' survey takes a look at the role money
plays in romantic relationships," explains author and personal finance
expert, Carmen Wong Ulrich. "Communicating with your partner about
money is a vital part of developing and maintaining a happy
relationship. It's very interesting to see how dynamics and priorities
differ between genders and nationalities."

Arguing about money is not the only difference between U.S.
couples responding to the survey and those in relationships across the
pond. UK couples are more likely to have separate bank accounts (71%),
while about half of American couples share bank accounts.

For the second consecutive year, the survey found that PayPal is
the number two most popular reported method of payment for respondents
buying their Valentine's Day gifts online, immediately after credit
cards.

Other surprising findings uncovered through PayPal's "Can't Buy Me
Love" survey include:

-- Nearly one in four couples responding to the survey in both
countries use online shopping as a way to keep their partners
in the dark about their purchases.

-- Women surveyed in both countries agree it isn't the man's
responsibility to pick up the tab after a dinner date. Women
in the U.S. think the man should pay only if he initiates the
date. Whereas, women in the UK think splitting the check is
polite, regardless of who instigates the date.

-- Traditional "romantic" gifts still top the list of the most
popular Valentine's Day presents given by responding couples
in both locations. Cards are the most popular, followed by
dinner dates and flowers. After January 28th, special offers
and discounts on Valentine's Day gifts will be available at:
www.paypal.com/valentinesday.

About the survey

The PayPal "Can't Buy Me Love" Survey was conducted by Ipsos from
December 12, 2007 to December 18, 2007 via email invitation to online
panelists. The total sample size was 3,002 respondents (1,500 U.S. and
1,502 UK), with quotas to ensure sample distribution accurately
represented the online population with regard to age and gender.

About PayPal

Founded in 1998, PayPal, an eBay (Nasdaq:EBAY) company, enables
any individual or business with an email address to send and receive
payments online securely and easily using a bank account, credit card
or stored balance. Because PayPal allows customers to shop online
without sharing their financial information with merchants, privacy is
built into the service. PayPal has nearly 164 million accounts and is
available to users in 190 markets around the world. More information
about the company can be found at https://www.paypal.com.

About Carmen Wong Ulrich

Carmen Wong Ulrich is an author, advice columnist, freelance
editor, writer and speaker. She is the former special projects editor
at Money magazine and is the author of the book Generation Debt: Take
Control of Your Money (Warner Books). Carmen writes for Real Simple
magazine, Essence, Shape, Health, CNNMoney.com and is an advice
columnist for Latina magazine. She has appeared on CNN, CNN Headline
News, Weekend TODAY, FOX's Good Day New York, ABC News (New York), The
WB11 Morning Show and the Comcast network.

PayPal
Charlotte Hill, 408-967-5754
chhill@paypal.com
or
Access Communications for PayPal
Caitlin Snavely, 917-522-3522
csnavely@accesspr.com

Copyright Business Wire 2008