Good news for Bitcoin users: the list of possible options to use their assets has enlarged, and now they are able to spend their Bitcoins using the Lightning Network for shopping on the e-commerce platform Amazon.
According to the crypto payment processing startup Moon, all lightning-enabled wallets will now be possible for usage through the Moon browser extension which will let users spend crypto on e-commerce sites such as Amazon simply by connecting the browser extension to exchange accounts like Coinbase.
Moon CEO Ken Kruger said:
“The extension will pop up a QR code and it will have the lightning invoice, which you could also copy and paste if you can’t use the QR code for some reason. And you’ll be able to pay with your favourite lightning wallet.”
It is important to stress that Amazon will not be using Bitcoin directly for trades, as the company itself never directly deals with any digital currency. Moreover, it is also unknown which traditional financial institutions convert Bitcoin to fiat so that Amazon merchants receive fiat currency for their wares.
However, Kruger stated that by 2020, the Lightning-enabled feature is expected to work on any e-commerce site. Whether that platform accepts Bitcoin directly or not, does not matter. Currently, users spend their crypto from their wallet on Amazon, via the plugin.
The launch is set to occur on Wednesday, April 24, on the Chrome web browser.
Further, Kruger added that the integration has become possible through VISA and Mastercard partnership. They will earn part of the transaction fees equivalent to once paid via plastic cards.
Kruger said:
“There’s no direct merchant integration. However we’re integrating with the Visa and Mastercard network and we get a cut of the interchange fees that merchants pay every time they receive a credit card transaction.”
The initiative is a really good step, as it may help in solving the usability problems Bitcoin faces.
About Moon
Moon is a crypto payment processing company set up in New York last year. Its staff includes only three people with just $100,000 invested by the Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator.
As Moon CEO Ken Kruger said, Moon is planning to run a Series A in 2019 and learn users’ behavior for building its activity. Kruger explained:
“There’s a lot of opportunities to help solve some of those usability problems and getting people onto the lightning network, increasing adoption in that way. We’re going to engage with other folks in the lightning community to see what people are doing, what they’re working on and if there are any significant gaps. We’d love to step in and help whenever possible.”
Currently, Moon browser is available on Chrome, Brave browser, and Opera. Apart from Amazon, the company is planning to launch support for other popular retail stores like eBay, Aliexpress, Dominos’, Target, and Etsy.
