Bitcoin’s disruptive model and supposed vision, as outlined in the white paper, makes it not only a threat to central banking and the accepted monetary policy, but also to more progressive models such as PayPal. However, PayPal’s chief financial officer, John Rainey has come out with positive things to say about the digital currency’s potential.
In an article in the Wall Street Journal, Rainey admitted that PayPal has been keeping an eye on the digital currency since as far back as 2015, adding it to its Braintree Platform.
Rainey admits that Bitcoin is not at the table yet when it comes to being an effective payment method, but there is potential for it to become what it was outlined to be.
Still too volatile
Rainey pointed out that today, with the violent levels of volatility, Bitcoin does not make sense as a payment system yet.
“Given the volatility of Bitcoin right now, it’s not a reliable currency for transactions because if you’re a merchant and you have a 10 percent profit margin, and you accept Bitcoin, and the very next day Bitcoin drops 15 percent, you are now underwater on that transaction,” Rainey said.
In seeing potential in Bitcoin, Rainey honed in on the technology which has indeed captured the attention of a lot of sectors.
“The technology, there is real merit to it. I do think, though, it will be years down the road before we see the kind of ubiquity and acceptance that make it a form of currency that is used every day,” he added.
Heading towards mass acceptance
Bitcoins march towards global and mass acceptance has been rapid and determined. The cryptocurrency has only been functional for less than 10 years, yet it’s move to mainstream acceptance can really only be traced back a few years ago when companies like Microsoft and Steam added it to their platforms.
Even from there, the wave of adoption was slow until it grabbed headlines in late 2017 with its rally towards $20,000 which saw a mass influx of users into the cryptocurrency market.
Vladislav Sopov
Dan Burgin