eBay announced that it has acquired BillSafe, a purchase-on-invoice technology provider. eBay will combine the technology with PayPal in Germany.

eBay has owned a minority stake in BillSafe since October 2010. Now it owns the whole thing.

eBay says BillSafe works with merchants of all sizes in Germany, where there are already over 15 million PayPal accounts. Purchase-on-invoice is the most popular form of payment in Germany, as well as in Austria, Switzerland, and the Netherlands, eBay says.

“German customers are extremely security-conscious, and they enjoy the convenience and safety of invoicing when they shop online. One of PayPal’s greatest assets is the security of our system, and we’re glad that we can now offer customers even more peace of mind with a payment method that they already know and prefer and that drives more sales for the merchants,” says Arnulf Keese, managing director of PayPal Germany. “Together with BillSAFE, we can offer even more choices to our customers – whether they prefer to pay with their bank accounts, their credit cards or now through purchase on invoice.”

“Purchase on invoice is an ideal addition to the payment options available with PayPal and makes it the most comprehensive service for consumers and merchants alike,” said Alexander Ey, managing director of BillSAFE. “Security-conscious shoppers can receive and inspect the merchandise they bought online before paying for their purchases. And merchants can sell to customers who were previously skeptical of buying online. It’s an ideal match.”

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. eBay says it doesn’t expect the acquisition to have a material impact on its financial guidance as issued in its Q3 earnings release.