By Natalie DeCoste
Venmo is capitalizing on the cryptocurrency craze and is now offering its customers a service to buy and sell different digital coins.
The service will allow Venmo’s customers to buy four kinds of cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, and Litecoin. The move is a significant step in the movement toward making cryptocurrencies more mainstream.
Starting April 20, users will be able to purchase the four cryptocurrencies for as little as $1. The service will also allow users to share their crypto purchases on a social media-like feed the way they would with a typical transaction on the Venmo app.
“Crypto on Venmo is a new way for the Venmo community to start exploring the world of crypto, within the Venmo environment they trust and rely on as a key component of their everyday financial lives,” said Darrell Esch, SVP and GM, Venmo.
Users cannot only buy and sell cryptocurrencies but also have access to in-app guides and videos to help answer commonly asked questions and learn more about the world of crypto.
“No matter where you are in your cryptocurrency journey, crypto on Venmo will help our community to learn and explore cryptocurrencies on a trusted platform and directly in the app they know and love. Our goal is to provide our customers with an easy-to-use platform that simplifies the process of buying and selling cryptocurrencies and demystifies some of the common questions and misconceptions that consumers may have,” added Esch.
The move continues Venmo’s parent company PayPal’s expansion of its cryptocurrency services, including using digital currencies to shop and pay for items within PayPal’s network of roughly 26 million retailers. The company also recently agreed to buy Curv, a start-up that helps clients store their digital tokens securely, for nearly $200 million.
“The shift to digital forms of currencies is inevitable, bringing with it clear advantages in terms of financial inclusion and access; efficiency, speed and resilience of the payments system; and the ability for governments to disburse funds to citizens quickly,” PayPal CEO Dan Schulman said at the time.
Venmo is one of the most popular digital payment services in the U.S., with roughly 70 million users, many of whom are in younger age demographics allowing Paypal to continue growing its crypto clientele.
The Venmo development also coincides with the recent spike in cryptocurrency prices. The meme cryptocurrency Dogecoin recently hit its peak price of 43 cents, a major jump from the .008 cent value it had at the beginning of the year.
Popular cryptocurrency Bitcoin, which consumers can now buy through Venmo’s service, also recently hit its highest price at $64,829.14, and while the price has gone down slightly, the crypto has still seen 89.78% returns this year.
