Back to top

Image: Bigstock

PayPal (PYPL) Explores Stablecoins to Boost Crypto Efforts

Read MoreHide Full Article

PayPal (PYPL - Free Report) is leaving no stone unturned to bolster its presence in the cryptocurrency market.

Reportedly, the company is looking forward to launching PayPal Coin, a stablecoin that is a digital currency. This testifies to the above-mentioned fact.

Notably, the company intends to back its stablecoin by the U.S. dollar. Further, PayPal might work closely with relevant regulators to smoothly execute its stablecoin plans.

The launch of stablecoins is expected to be a notable step for PayPal, which has witnessed success by foraying into the cryptocurrency market in 2020.

The company's growing focus on stablecoin remains a major positive in the current scenario, wherein the bitcoin space is witnessing a topsy-turvy situation.

Growing Crypto Efforts

The latest move bodes well for the company’s strengthening crypto initiatives.

Apart from the latest move, the launch of cryptocurrency service, which allows users to buy, hold and sell digital currencies like bitcoin, bitcoin cash, ethereum or Litecoin directly from their PayPal account, in the U.K. remains noteworthy.

The launch of crypto on Venmo, which lets Venmo customers buy, hold and sell cryptocurrency directly within the Venmo app, remains another positive. Customers can also check cryptocurrency trends from the app.

PayPal’s agreement to acquire a digital asset security technology provider — Curv — is another positive. Post-acquisition, Curve will join PayPal’s newly created business unit dedicated to blockchain, cryptocurrency and digital currencies.

The unveiling of a feature called Checkout with Crypto, which allows customers to convert their cryptocurrency holdings seamlessly into fiat currency at the checkout, is witnessing strong adoption.

With all these endeavors, PayPal remains well-poised to penetrate the booming cryptocurrency market rapidly amid the pandemic, which has highlighted the importance of digital currency transactions.

Per a report by MarketsandMarkets, the cryptocurrency market is expected to reach $2.2 billion by 2026, witnessing a CAGR of 7.1% between 2021 and 2026.

Per a report by Fortune Business Insights, the market is expected to reach $1.9 billion by 2028, seeing a CAGR of 11.1% from 2021 to 2028.

Competitive Scenario

We note that the latest move along with the above-mentioned efforts is likely to strengthen PayPal’s competitive position against one of its biggest peers, Block (SQ - Free Report) .

Block, which facilitates the buying and selling of bitcoins via its Cash App, is riding on growing bitcoin revenues. This has turned out to be the key catalyst to its top-line growth.

In third-quarter 2021, Block generated revenues of $1.8 billion from the bitcoin category (47% of total revenues), up 11% from the year-ago quarter. The company is continuously gaining from the increasing uptake of the Cash App, and strong customer demand and growth in bitcoin activities.

Apart from Square, Meta Platforms and Shopify (SHOP - Free Report) are leaving no stone unturned to gain a strong foothold in the cryptocurrency space.

Meta continues to witness solid momentum on the back of its crypto project Diem. Reportedly, the company, via this project, intends to roll out a U.S. dollar stablecoin.

Meanwhile, Shopify allows its merchants to accept payments in bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum and many other cryptocurrencies. It recently took a step further in the crypto market by making its platform NFT-enabled, which allows users to mint and trade collectibles.

Nevertheless, PayPal’s strong crypto initiatives along with the growing crypto volume are likely to strengthen its position in the intensifying cryptocurrency battle against the above-mentioned companies.

Currently, PayPal carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


PayPal Holdings, Inc. (PYPL) - free report >>

Shopify Inc. (SHOP) - free report >>

Block, Inc. (SQ) - free report >>

Published in