If the market crash got you nervous and you thought the crypto industry was dead, you might want to change your mind. PayPal, the global e-payments giant, is working on developing its own cryptocurrency.
PayPal is exploring the development of a stablecoin, possibly pegged to the U.S. dollar, although there is no information on a roadmap for the project. Speaking to Bloomberg News, Jose Fernandez da Ponte, senior vice president of crypto and digital currencies at PayPal, revealed that the endeavor was just an exploratory, yet very serious, even though there were no concrete plans for a practical implementation yet. He assured, however, that if approved, the currency would meet all necessary regulatory standards:
“We are exploring a stablecoin; if and when we seek to move forward, we will of course, work closely with relevant regulators.”
PayPal Coin: Why a Stablecoin Makes Sense For PayPal
The development of a stablecoin offers certain advantages for PayPal. For example, it avoids the regulatory pressures that exist around the more volatile and decentralized cryptocurrencies, it provides peace of mind to customers that the amount they hold in their wallets will have the same value over time. It is also better suited to PayPal’s business model, which is essentially a licensed money transmitter.
PayPal Coin, the (not so) creative codename of the cryptocurrency, was discovered earlier this year by Steve Moser, a software developer who in November 2021 also revealed that the code of the PayPal App had references to possible compatibility with the NEO cryptocurrency.
NEO is a smart contract blockchain developed primarily in China and was known as the Chinese Ethereum. It enjoyed a lot of popularity during the boom of 2017-2018, mainly because it was promoted as one of the first Ethereum killers. However, it failed to capture the public’s attention in subsequent years. It is currently ranked 69th in the TOP 100 cryptocurrencies with the largest market capitalization.
The Next Step In The Bigger Plan
PayPal’s bet is the next step in the company’s interest in the world of cryptocurrencies. Peter Thiel already warned in 2021 that Bitcoin could be a financial weapon of China and called to push for research and development in the U.S. industry so as not to be left behind in the race to dominate the cryptocurrency and digital asset market.
In 2020 PayPal announced a feature to buy Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and Bitcoin Cash and has since expanded its services, allowing the sale of cryptocurrencies, 3, and working on providing this service to other countries.
And it is also important to notice that PayPal was a founding member of the Libra Association, an initiative led by Facebook to create a cryptocurrency controlled by several large corporations. The project ultimately failed, but PayPal seems to be willing to learn from Facebook’s mistakes in order to successfully launch its own currency.