PayPal will allow users to pay with cryptocurrencies at millions of merchants

AppleInsiderAppleInsider
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in General Discussion
PayPal users will soon be able to use their cryptocurrency holdings on the platform for payments at millions of its merchants across the globe.

Credit: PayPal
Credit: PayPal


The online payment company is expected to announce the cryptocurrency checkout feature on Tuesday, Reuters has reported. PayPal first revealed it was working on the feature in 2020, and it's expected to roll out to all 29 million of its merchants in the "coming months."

Customers who hold Bitcoin, Ether, Bitcoin cash, or Litecoin in PayPal digital wallets will be able to convert those cryptocurrencies into fiat currency for use at checkout, the company said.

"This is the first time you can seamlessly use cryptocurrencies in the same way as a credit card or a debit card inside your PayPal wallet," CEO Dan Schulman told Reuters.

The feature builds on PayPal's existing cryptocurrency support, which it officially launched in October. That offering made the company one of the largest mainstream financial services providers to adopt cryptocurrencies. In February, PayPal also set up a dedicated cryptocurrency business unit that is expected to launch later in 2021.

Cryptocurrencies have exploded in popularity -- and value -- in recent years. Since the beginning of 2020, Bitcoin, for example, has surged more than 660%. As of writing on March 30, a single Bitcoin is worth $58,885.30.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 6
    randominternetpersonrandominternetperson Posts: 3,089member
    Next maybe I can pay with AAPL shares?  Makes about as much sense. 
    lkruppwatto_cobra
  • Reply 2 of 6
    larryjwlarryjw Posts: 1,031member
    randominternetperson said:
    Next maybe I can pay with AAPL shares?  Makes about as much sense. 
    Probably makes more sense to pay in AAPL shares.

    First, the system is capable of handling tens of thousands of share transactions a second, whereas, Bitcoin can only handle 5 to 7 a second while using up the electrical power of Argentina. 

    Second, aapl shares have value with some basis in the real economic activity of a successful company. 
    muthuk_vanalingamwatto_cobra
  • Reply 3 of 6
    foregoneconclusionforegoneconclusion Posts: 2,687member
    Crypto is not currency. It's a speculative commodity. The whole point of currency is to provide a relatively stable value, not something that wildly inflates or crashes. 
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 6
    crowleycrowley Posts: 10,453member
    Jfc, cancelling my PayPal account.  Anyone who has anything to do with this nonsense needs a kick in the balls.
    muthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 5 of 6
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,727member
    larryjw said:
    Next maybe I can pay with AAPL shares?  Makes about as much sense. 
    Probably makes more sense to pay in AAPL shares.

    First, the system is capable of handling tens of thousands of share transactions a second, whereas, Bitcoin can only handle 5 to 7 a second while using up the electrical power of Argentina. 

    Second, aapl shares have value with some basis in the real economic activity of a successful company. 
    Wow, I checked, you are pretty close with that analogy. https://yearbook.enerdata.net/electricity/electricity-domestic-consumption-data.html
    muthuk_vanalingamwatto_cobra
  • Reply 6 of 6
    lowededwookielowededwookie Posts: 1,143member
    foregoneconclusion said:
    Crypto is not currency. It's a speculative commodity. The whole point of currency is to provide a relatively stable value, not something that wildly inflates or crashes. 
    It depends on the cryptocurrency. Take Ampleforth for instance. It’s base price has been set to the price of the US dollar in 2019. To keep that price point you are issued tokens if the value goes above $1 or you have tokens removed if the value drops. This way, even though your token amount is fluid, it remains a dollar for dollar value.

    Bitcoin is ridiculous and so is Ethereum. These are most likely what you are thinking of by your comment but even these are based on prices of a limited amount of coins.

    Currency has all sorts of issues and can’t be treated as stable either. Today’s currency isn’t based on anything tangible either. America for instance has more money than gold that they hold. It’s only got value because of inflation. Sooner or later the US dollar will crash and take down the entire world with it due to trading being done in US dollars.

    Cryptocurrencies that have a stable value like DAI or Ampleforth could be a good replacement if/when that happens because they are designed from the ground up with stability of value in mind. They could also be good for a global currency which would remove the need for conversion fees etc.
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