The crypto markets are surging Wednesday after payments giant PayPal announced it will launch a long-rumored plan to support cryptocurrency.
The company says users in the US will be able to buy, sell, and store cryptocurrencies on PayPal “in the coming weeks.” Support on Venmo and in additional countries is coming in 2021. Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash and Litecoin are the first coins that will be supported.
Customers will be able to use those crypto assets as a payment option on the 26 million websites that support PayPal. The cryptocurrencies will be converted to fiat at a fixed price and merchants will continue to receive cash from PayPal.
The New York State Department of Financial Services has granted PayPal a conditional crypto license, and PayPal is partnering with Paxos Trust Company to offer its suite of services.
The announcement triggered a big surge in the crypto markets, with BTC up 7.19% at $12,760 at time of publishing, according to CoinMarketCap.
Ethereum is up 6.64% at $393, and XRP is up 3.51% at $0.2534.
