Key points
- PayPal is set to launch a cryptocurrencies hub for select users
- The adoption of crypto solutions is part of the platform’s plan to reinvent itself as a crypto-inclusive platform
PayPal recently launched a stablecoin in a push to rebrand as a crypto-inclusive payments platform. On Monday, it also announced it was also rolling out a cryptocurrency hub for select users.
Paypal’s crypto endeavors continue
Paypal’s new cryptocurrencies hub will allow for the sale and purchase of crypto assets, among other crypto-friendly functionalities. The payment company’s recent terms and conditions update detail the prerequisites for crypto users interested in trying out the new platform.
The Cryptocurrencies Hub service will also facilitate the payment of purchases via PayPal using money stored after the sale of crypto assets. It will also be crucial in the conversion between PYUSD and other crypto assets.
PayPal further released a statement explaining that any balances in the Cryptocurrencies Hub represent a user’s ownership of the amount of each crypto asset displayed. As such, users will not hold the digital crypto assets in their crypto asset balance.
Since this feature is still in the pilot phase, not all PayPal users will get to explore it. The eligible users of the Cryptocurrencies HIb must have “a personal PayPal account and a Balance Account in good standing.” Additionally, PayPal will verify the required identifying information like names, taxpayer identification numbers, and physical addresses.
“You can only use your Cryptocurrencies Hub as part of your Balance Account by accessing it through your personal PayPal account. If you are a Hawaii resident, we will not allow you to establish a Cryptocurrencies Hub now.”
Upon launch, the Cryptocurrencies Hub will be connected with PayPal users can access it using existing credentials. These developments come days after the company launched a highly divisive crypto stablecoin pegged on the US Dollar, the PYUSD.
Some feel that it may propel the mainstream adoption of crypto assets, while others believe it may bring trouble in decentralization as the company has its smart contracts infused with functions like “freeze funds” and “wipefrozenfunds” which goes against the spirit of decentralization.
Keep watching Fintech Express for more updates on this and other fintech-related developments.