Stories

This year, PayPal’s Singapore Development Centre (SDC) celebrates 15 years of powering global payments, driving innovation, and fortifying our defences against evolving threats. For over a decade, we have strived for engineering excellence and to make SDC a great place to work for our technologists. With teams spread across product engineering, information security and global professional services, every member has been instrumental in paving the way for the company to become a digital payments leader.

We spoke with two of our longest tenured SDC employees who’ve been with us from the very beginning for some insight into how the centre has grown:

What do you do and how has your career evolved at PayPal?

Aung Min: I currently lead a team of engineers that work on PayPal’s compliance platform. Since joining PayPal as a Quality Assurance engineer back in 2007, I’ve been inspired by the strong culture of learning and development at PayPal. My career has evolved broadly and I’ve assumed both individual contributor and management roles across a diverse range of portfolios from Quality Assurance to Software Development. Though my tenure at PayPal is considerably long, my career journey has always been a rewarding experience, both personally and professionally. 

Latha Gopalakrishnan: My role today involves managing and mentoring live support specialists within the Global Compliance and Customer Verification Platform team. Given my background as a technical developer and solution architect, I’m able to leverage my subject matter expertise to improve efficiencies and deliver a better experience for internal and external customers. PayPal has provided me with a healthy environment to explore different domains and I’m appreciative of the support I’ve received along the way from leaders and peers.

What has been the biggest change you’ve seen at SDC?

Latha Gopalakrishnan: The biggest change is.. probably the size of the team! I still remember our very first outpost at Neil Road, where we started.

Aung Min: The most significant change I have witnessed is that SDC has become a melting pot for innovation with the incubator program and an inclusive workplace for a diverse workforce. The people and energy at the workplace, innovation, and fun activities have been a significant part of the culture at SDC since day one. As we’ve grown in both talent and capabilities, the people-oriented and innovative culture has taken centre stage and enabled an open, inclusive and innovative environment that attracts talented leaders and engineers from diverse backgrounds.

What are you most looking forward to in the next 5 years?

Aung Min: I believe in the potential of digital finance to help underserved communities. Working at PayPal has enabled me to have a meaningful impact by contributing towards a more inclusive global economy where no one is left behind.

Latha Gopalakrishnan: I’m looking forward to playing a more active role in building the next generation of leaders at SDC. The people-focused culture and learning opportunities make it a great playground for members to collaborate and nurture emerging talent.

What makes PayPal a great place to work?

Latha Gopalakrishnan: Strong work culture, and the flexibility to find balance between work and life outside the office.

Aung Min: Focus on holistic employee wellness that encourages us to not only look at physical health, but also mental and financial health. In my personal experience, the value-driven and people-oriented culture make PayPal and SDC a great place to work.

As we hurtle into the last remaining months of the year and commemorate our win as one of Singapore’s Best Workplaces in Technology,  here’s a quick look at SDC in numbers. 

Having weathered close to two years of being in a state of flux, we believe we’ve emerged together stronger and more resilient. Here’s to the next 15 and more!