Fintech leader Stripe integrates USDC payments across Solana, Ethereum, and Polygon blockchains
The company experimented crypto payments with Bitcoin in 2014 but stopped the service in 2018 due to volatility concerns.
Share this article
Stripe, a major player in digital payments, is set to accept crypto payments, starting with Circle’s stablecoin USDC on Solana, Ethereum, and Polygon networks, as shared by Stripe’s co-founder and President John Collison at the company’s Connect developer conference in San Francisco this week.
The coming offering marks Stripe’s re-entry into the crypto payment space. The company hasn’t accepted crypto payments since 2018 when it discontinued Bitcoin support due to high fees and lengthy transaction times, which negatively affected the user experience.
Things are different now; both the duration and cost of transactions have been reduced dramatically, said Collison.
“Transaction settlements are no longer comparable with Christopher Nolan films for length, and transaction costs are no longer comparable with Christopher Nolan films for budget,” Collison stated. “Stripe is bringing back crypto payments — this time with stablecoins, which are a way better experience.”
Stripe has a history of dipping its toes in and out of the crypto market. The firm initially dabbled in Bitcoin payments in 2014, but concerns about its volatility and inefficiency led them to withdraw support in 2018. In 2019, Stripe joined Facebook’s Libra project, a now-defunct stablecoin initiative, but again opted out.
In 2022, Stripe began its re-entry into the crypto market by enabling USDC payout feature on Polygon, with Twitter as its initial customer.
Stripe’s latest move to accept USDC stablecoin payments marks a more concrete step back into the crypto arena. However, it’s unclear if Stripe will fully commit to crypto payments with this launch. It appears that the company is testing the waters with stablecoins to see if it can offer crypto payments while maintaining their reputation.
Share this article
