PayPal Allows Users to Transfer Cryptocurrencies to External Wallets
2 min read
Payment company PayPal announced this Tuesday that it will allow its customers to transfer cryptocurrencies to external wallets, something that was not possible until then.
With this, PayPal will become more like other popular crypto services.
“As of today, PayPal supports native cryptocurrency transfer between PayPal and other wallets and exchanges,” the company said in a statement.
According to the announcement, the option to make external transfers will be rolled out to users today. Additionally, it will be available to everyone in the US in the coming weeks.
Sending crypto to external wallets on PayPal
From now on, users will be able to send BTC, ETH, Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and Litecoin (LTC) assets to external wallets. This includes, for example, those linked to hardware wallets.
About the initiative, Jose Fernandez da Ponte, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Blockchain and Digital Assets at PayPal said:
“Adding the ability to transfer, send and receive cryptocurrencies is another step in our journey to building a more inclusive and effective financial system. We are excited to connect PayPal customers with other wallets, exchanges and apps. We will continue to release additional crypto features, products and services in the coming months.”
PayPal and Cryptocurrencies
As reported by Cryptheory, PayPal launched its cryptocurrency trading services at the end of 2020. At that time, the company started to allow the purchase, sale and storage of the four aforementioned digital coins.
However, it was not possible to move the funds to external destinations such as MetaMask, Coinbase or hardware wallets.
Therefore, the service was heavily criticized by crypto enthusiasts. After all, “no keys, no cryptocurrencies”. On the other hand, the initiative showed that digital assets had reached the mainstream.
Now, with the ability to send the assets to external wallets, PayPal shows that it is moving forward and that it can bring digital currencies to the millions of people around the world who use its platform.
Furthermore, the launch is a clear sign that PayPal is not backing down on its crypto initiative even in the face of a bear market.
In an interview with Decrypt, Ponte said the company is taking a long-term view:
“The reason we are in crypto is because we believe that a substantial part of commerce will migrate to digital currencies,” said Jose Fernandez da Ponte.
He further added that this is the reason why the company does not charge for cryptocurrency transactions.
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