Fintechs have distinguished themselves from traditional banks by adopting cryptocurrency trading. The expansion has been a success for some of the industry’s greatest brands. Take, for example, PayPal. In November, the firm began enabling US users to purchase, store, and trade Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, and Bitcoin cash, following in the footsteps of Square’s Cash App. According to Jose Fernandez da Ponte, PayPal’s vice president of blockchain, crypto, and digital currencies, “these improvements will provide our consumers greater choice and freedom in acquiring cryptocurrencies on our platform.” In October 2020, the large money transfer business dipped its fingers into the crypto waters, and gradually introduced some new functions. The firm introduced its Checkout With Bitcoin service in March after being criticized for just enabling consumers to buy and hold crypto. The decision was considered at the time as a significant step toward introducing digital assets to mainstream customers, and it spurred bitcoin’s recent surge. PayPal isn’t the only business that has noticed an increase in customer demand for bitcoin support. Visa accepts debit cards issued by cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase and cryptocurrency services provider Crypto.com.
