On Wednesday, PayPal announced that it is enabling US merchants to buy, hold and sell cryptocurrency directly from their business accounts. This new functionality aims to increase the utility of digital currencies and make it easier for users and merchants to deal with crypto assets in their businesses.
New Features Allow Easier Crypto Management
Jose Fernandez da Ponte, PayPal’s Senior Vice President of Blockchain, Cryptocurrency, and Digital Currencies, highlighted the company’s commitment to understanding user needs with this new feature, stating:
Since we launched the ability for PayPal and Venmo consumers to buy, sell, and hold cryptocurrency in their wallets, we have learned a lot about how they want to use their cryptocurrency.
According to the company’s announcement, demand from business owners for similar capabilities has prompted PayPal to expand its offerings with the goal of making it easier for merchants to navigate the digital currency space.
PayPal Introduces External Wallet Transfers
Beyond basic transactions, the firm disclosed that is also enabling merchants to transfer cryptocurrency to and from external wallets. This means that business account holders can send and receive supported crypto tokens to third-party eligible wallets.
PayPal has been at the front of integrating cryptocurrencies into its platform. In 2020, the company made headlines by allowing customers to buy, hold, and sell cryptocurrencies through their PayPal and Venmo accounts.
This was followed by the introduction of PayPal USD (PYUSD), a US dollar-denominated stablecoin, in 2023. The stablecoin has since been integrated into the Xoom platform, allowing users to transfer money internationally without incurring transaction fees when using PYUSD.
Most recently, the firm expanded the reach of PYUSD by making it available on the Solana blockchain. However, it’s important to note that the latest feature introduced by the company on Wednesday will not be available to businesses operating in New York State at launch.
Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com
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