crypto for payments

Over the past few months, many players in the traditional payments industry have refocused their strategies and offerings to meet the demand for digital payments. Given that the COVID-19 pandemic prompted people to practice social distancing and turn to cashless payments, it has become an opportune time for many financial institutions to modify their work to accommodate more consumers.

For their digital payments, many people have also turned to cryptocurrencies. In addition to their virtual nature, digital currencies are also decentralised and immutable, making them a more secure payment option compared to fiat money. Additionally, cryptocurrencies are not geographically bound to one country, giving crypto holders a convenient way to transact with people in other countries without changing currencies.

Many individuals, organisations, and governments are starting to see the advantages of cryptocurrencies and their potential to create an entirely new way of how transactions can be completed. Cryptocurrencies have become so popular that Germany’s largest financial conglomerate Deutsche Bank even predicted that digital assets would replace fiat by 2030.

With cryptocurrencies gradually taking the spotlight, this phenomenon has become an opportunity for traditional payment service providers to look into the blockchain and explore how they can integrate such technology into their systems.

Today, many payment companies have already integrated blockchain and cryptocurrencies into their solutions, with some partnering with cryptocurrency providers worldwide to expand their roster of payment methods. Some of these payment companies include:

Revolut

British financial technology company Revolut recently entered the blockchain and crypto scene by launching in the US with Bitcoin services. This development now allows American Revolut customers, except for those living in Tennessee, to buy and sell Bitcoin and/or Ether with fiat money and vice versa through the Revolut app. As of this writing, Revolut is planning to add more cryptocurrencies to its existing roster.

With this development, Revolut is also looking to expand its services to countries in the Asia Pacific region, particularly Australia, Singapore, and Japan.

Also Read: How Binance acquired 35 per cent market share in a year with its new crypto derivatives line

The startup has been offering cryptocurrency trading and buying services in Europe since 2017. Aside from Bitcoin and Ether, Revolut also supports Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash and XRP. It charges 2.5 per cent in conversion fees from standard customers and 1.5 per cent from premium customers for every crypto transaction.

PayPal

PayPal started taking interest in cryptocurrencies in 2013 when John Donahoe, CEO of PayPal parent company eBay at the time, John Donahoe, said that the payments platform would someday integrate Bitcoin to keep up with changes in the financial industry.

It wasn’t until this year that PayPal confirmed its interest in cryptocurrency and blockchain, building on the idea that digital assets can boost financial inclusion and reduce some “pain points” in the financial industry. It didn’t take long before crypto companies started taking advantage of this development.

Singapore-based blockchain solutions provider Pundi X is already supporting PayPal on its point-of-sale device XPOS. The integration of the two systems now allows merchants to process credit card payments on XPOS and complete purchases of cryptocurrencies via PayPal through the POS machine. Pundi X CEO Zac Cheah even noted that the integration with leading payment providers such as PayPal can help boost blockchain and crypto adoption outside the crypto community.

Square

Point-of-sale solutions provider Square recently won a US patent for a payment system that will allow users to seamlessly complete crypto-to-fiat transactions. The system would feature automatic exchange and real-time settlements to help merchants accept volatile cryptocurrencies.

On the other hand, the system would also permit consumers to pay in their preferred asset, which would then be converted to an asset that the merchant wants to hold. The converted asset would still hold the value of the original asset.

Also Read: Why Bitcoin is set to boom in a post-COVID-19 era

Square started supporting cryptocurrencies, particularly Bitcoin, in 2018 when it permitted Bitcoin trading on its cash payments app. It’s no surprise that the company finally gave in to crypto given that Square CEO Jack Dorsey has repeatedly praised Bitcoin, even going so far as to predict that it will become a native currency of the Internet.

Ingenico

Like PayPal, Ingenico teamed up with Pundi X in 2019 to help more retailers using the APOS A8 POS device to accept payments in cryptocurrencies alongside those made in fiat money. Customers can pay for their orders using Bitcoin, Binance Coin, Ether, XEM, Wan and NPXS, among other cryptocurrencies. They can also top up on cryptocurrencies with APOS A8 POS. To provide a more seamless transaction experience, XPOS in APOS A8 provides conversion rates between fiat and cryptocurrencies.

Marcus Low, Senior Vice President, Asia Pacific of Ingenico Group, has mentioned it is a great way to prepare for the future of payments and introduce cryptocurrency as a reliable payment option to our clients and customers worldwide.

As shown by these payments giants, blockchain and crypto adoption are making their way toward the mainstream.

More and more people will see how blockchain and crypto can change their lives as the world continues to keep up with changes and developments in the financial industry brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and other technological advancements.

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