At least 65% of people who use the Paypal app to trade bitcoin are prepared to start using the top cryptocurrency to pay for goods and services at the 28 million stores supported by the payments company throughout the world.
According to a proprietary survey of 380 Paypal users by Mizuho Securities, 17% of the respondents said they have already traded bitcoin (BTC) via their Paypal accounts since the firm started offering crypto services in October.
Of these, the majority are the ones who showed readiness to utilize bitcoin for purchases. The finding is significant to the extent that it bolsters bitcoin’s credentials as a viable means of payment – something that bitcoin opponents have routinely used to discredit the digital asset.
Paypal is expected to allow all its customers to use bitcoin as a funding source to pay for goods and services at its 28 million global merchants beginning in early 2021. The firm boasts around 346 million active users.
The survey found that bitcoin traders use the Paypal app three times as much as non-bitcoiners and that they had significantly higher cash balances on their Paypal digital wallets. It said 50% of traders reported using other Paypal functions such as pay-in-4 and QR code more after they started trading bitcoin on the platform.
Mizuho analyst Dan Dolev has guided Paypal’s revenue to climb 20% in 2021 thanks to the new crypto service. He has also upgraded his share price target to $290 from the previous $270. Shares of Paypal are down 1.84% at $212.56 as of the Dec. 2nd closing price. EST. The Nasdaq-listed firm is up more than 100% year-to-date.
Recently, hedge fund manager Pantera Capital revealed that Paypal bought up to 70% of all the newly mined bitcoin since the payments giant started offering cryptocurrency services in October. Together with Square’s Cash App, the two companies are buying more than 100% of all newly issued virgin BTC, it said.
With demand so high, Paypal’s entry into crypto appears to have spurred a massive rally in the price of bitcoin. The asset temporarily breached its 2017 high on Nov. 30, when it hit $19,864, but has since fallen between $18,850 to $19,150 at the time of writing.
What do you think about the number of Paypal users ready to make purchases with bitcoin? Let us know in the comments section below.
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