Venmo announced that its users will be able to transfer cryptocurrencies between Venmo wallets, PayPal accounts, and external wallets and exchanges.
Venmo’s introduction of full crypto wallet functionality is a big step towards the normalization of crypto payments. This move comes after the company launched its in-app trading platform for crypto assets in 2021. Until now, the app only supported buying and selling crypto assets, not transferring them.
Venmo’s push into crypto payments is a reaction to the increasing competition in the mobile peer-to-peer (P2P) payments market. While Venmo remains one of the most popular payment apps in the U.S., competitors including Cash App have also risen to prominence. Cash App entered the crypto payments space in 2018, giving it a head start over Venmo.
Through this rollout, Venmo users can identify a recipient with their wallet address or generate a unique identifying QR code that they can share with others. However, Venmo has not yet stated how fees and transaction costs will work for crypto transfers.
The integration of crypto transfers in such a popular payment app like Venmo shows that even traditional financial institutions like PayPal are recognizing the value of cryptocurrencies. It also marks a shift in the payments industry towards more efficient and cost-effective P2P payments, which can be facilitated by cryptocurrencies.
In the grand scheme of things, the move by Venmo shows how the fintech industry is increasingly integrating with the crypto world.
Looking ahead, we can expect to see more fintech companies and payment apps incorporating cryptocurrencies into their platforms. As more consumers become comfortable with using cryptocurrencies for payments, the industry will continue to grow and mature.