Allow PayPal Virtual Currency Trading and Payments... Bitcoin Price Hits 15-Month High

PayPal Embraces Cryptocurrency with 350 Million Users Worldwide... "The Biggest News"
Surpasses $13,000 Intraday on 22nd... Growing Interest from Fintech Industry and Central Banks

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] The world's largest online payment company, PayPal, has opened its doors to virtual currencies. It has made it possible to purchase products using virtual currencies such as Bitcoin. Following the decision by PayPal, a giant payment company used by 350 million people worldwide, Bitcoin prices reached their highest level in 15 months on the 22nd.

On the 21st (local time), PayPal announced that it would provide a service allowing users to buy, sell, and hold various virtual currencies including Bitcoin through a digital wallet. Starting early next year, it plans to enable payments for products from 26 million sellers on its own network, and expand the service to users outside the United States by the first half of next year.

PayPal stated, "Consumers will be able to instantly convert their chosen virtual currency balances into fiat currency without additional fees," adding that this will "greatly expand the utility of virtual currencies." Daniel Schulman, CEO of PayPal, explained, "Considering the benefits such as increased access to financial products and services, efficiency, speed, and resilience in payment systems, the transition to digital forms of currency is inevitable."

PayPal is the world's largest payment company with 350 million users worldwide. In the second quarter alone, $222 billion (approximately 251.6 trillion KRW) in payments were made through PayPal. PayPal's decision is significant in that it has accelerated the activation of virtual currencies. Earlier, U.S. simple payment company Square and stock investment app Robinhood launched services to buy and sell virtual currencies first, but they did not affect Bitcoin prices. According to Bloomberg and others, after PayPal's decision, Bitcoin prices rose nearly 8% on a closing basis and reached $13,221.63 intraday. The closing price of Bitcoin was $12,855.5, the highest in 15 months since July last year. As of 8:41 a.m. Korean time on the day, the trading price was $12,816.21 (approximately 14.54 million KRW).

Mike Novogratz, CEO of Galaxy Investment, a virtual currency specialized investment management company, tweeted immediately after PayPal's announcement, calling it "the biggest news in virtual currency" and stating, "All banks will now compete in virtual currency services. We have crossed the Rubicon." Venmo, the largest remittance application in the U.S., also plans to build a system for virtual currency transactions by the first half of next year.

Recently, fintech companies have shown high interest in virtual currencies. Square and MicroStrategy have invested together in Bitcoin, and global asset management firm Fidelity launched its first Bitcoin fund in August.

Central banks are also accelerating discussions on digital currencies. China is pushing for the introduction of the world's first national-level legal digital currency, the "Digital Yuan." Recently, the People's Bank of China conducted a one-week test in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, distributing 200 yuan worth of digital currency to 50,000 people to try using it. Sweden, Canada, and others have also started research on issuing their own digital currencies, while major economies such as the U.S., European Union (EU), and Japan continue related discussions. Jerome Powell, Chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve, recently stated, "It is more important to do it right than to be first," and said he would carefully consider whether to introduce a central bank digital currency (CBDC).

In light of this, PayPal CEO Schulman said, "We are considering all types of digital currencies while collaborating with central banks and thinking about the role PayPal can play in this process," adding, "We hope to make a meaningful contribution to concretizing the role digital currencies will play in the future global financial and economic system."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.