Cryptocurrency exchange Binance launched a beta version of the service Binance Pay for payments in five cryptocurrencies: BTC, ETH, BUSD, BNB and SXP. The exchange sees it as a potential competitor to PayPal.
A beta version of the service was "secretly" launched last Friday. Exchange executives announced it only today, at a virtual Binance Blockchain Week event. Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao said that Binance Pay is a "contactless and secure technology for making cryptocurrency payments."
The service supports five cryptocurrencies: BTC, ETH, BUSD Stablecoin, the domestic coin BNB and the SXP token of the Swipe project bought out by Binance last year. Binance Pay users can transfer cryptoassets from their account using a QR code through the app. According to Zhao, the service allows users to pay for purchases with crypto-assets and make money transfers around the world.
The head of Binance said that the exchange is not going to be limited to trading alone. He believes that payments are one of the most obvious uses of cryptocurrencies, so he intends to stimulate demand for digital assets. Binance's system will allow users to pay with cryptocurrencies, and sellers will receive stabelcoins backed by fiat currency (currently, only euros). In this case, sellers will not be exposed to the risk of cryptocurrency volatility.
According to Zhao, the service was developed as an "answer" to PayPal, the payment company that allowed U.S. citizens to buy, sell and store cryptocurrencies. According to Nomics, bitcoin trading volumes on PayPal have increased 950 percent since the beginning of January and were $242 million as of Jan. 11.
Last year, Binance launched the Binance Card debit card in the European Economic Area (EEA). The card also supports BTC, BNB, SXP and BUSD.