US users who hold cryptocurrencies in PayPal digital wallets will now be able to convert their holdings into fiat currencies to make purchases, Reuters said.
PayPal Holdings Inc has begun allowing US users to apply their cryptocurrency holdings to pay at millions of its online merchants on a global scale, a move that could significantly impulse the use of digital assets in day-to-day trading. Reuters from London exclusively reported this information.
In February, this possibility was sounding among users, but it is a reality today. The agency reported that customers holding Bitcoin, Ether, and Litecoin in PayPal digital wallets will now be able to turn their holdings into fiat currencies to make purchases, the company said.
Until now, this was not possible; users could only buy Crypto by Paypal but not do anything with them.
Paypal Doesn’t Allow Users to Buy Cryptocurrencies
The service, which PayPal highlighted it was working on at the end of last year, will gran complete access to the public to all of its 29 million merchants. The company told recently to the media outlet:
“This is the first time that you can seamlessly use cryptocurrency in the same way as a credit card or debit card within your PayPal wallet,” President and CEO Dan Schulman told Reuters before making his formal announcement.
Checkout with Crypto relies on PayPal users’ ability to buy, sell, and even hold cryptocurrencies, which the San Jose, California-based payment company launched in October.
The offering turned PayPal into one of the largest financial companies that open its network to cryptocurrencies and fuel a rally in virtual currency prices. PayPal’s launch comes less than a week after Tesla Inc announced it would also start accepting bitcoin payments for its products.
However, unlike PayPal transactions where merchants will receive fiat currency, Tesla said it would keep Bitcoin active as payment.
While the new asset is gaining traction among major investors, it still has a long road to walk to become a mainstream payment form due to its constant volatility. Reuters says that PayPal hopes its service can create a significant change; by settling the fiat currency transaction, merchants will not have to face the risk of volatility.
“We believe it is a transition point where cryptocurrencies go from being predominantly an asset class that you buy, hold or sell to now become a legitimate source of funding for real-world transactions with millions of merchants,” he said Schulman.
The company will not charge any transaction fees to pay with cryptocurrencies, and only one type of currency can be active for each purchase.
The news created a significant impact on the price of cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin’s price is now pretty close to USD 59,000, 1.55% more than yesterday at the same time. Meanwhile, Ethereum caressed 4.08%, Litecoin 0.26%, and Bitcoin Cash 1.56%.
By: Jenson Nuñez
