On Feb 2, 2021, Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, the CEO of world-leading exchange Binance, proudly unveiled Binance Pay. The new product is designed to offer users a contactless, borderless and secure means to pay and get paid in crypto.
Zhao announced the launch of Binance Pay, which is primed to be a crypto-based PayPal rival, during his live session on the Binance Blockchain Week. He explained that the retail app which is currently live in beta would amplify demand for crypto in everyday life.
“Binance Pay (beta) allows you to pay and get paid in crypto from your friends and family worldwide,” CZ noted.
According to the explainer on the Binance website, crypto users will be able to make purchases in crypto via the app. Simultaneously, merchants will receive fiat-backed stablecoins that are easily convertible to fiat to counter the volatility of digital assets.
At the moment, Binance Pay only supports one type of fiat (the euro) and has integrated support for five cryptocurrencies, including BNB, BTC and ETH.
Fostering Payments as a Use Case for Crypto
According to CZ, payments is currently the most obvious use case for digital assets, and competition in that niche is bound to grow.
Binance decided to develop its cryptocurrency payment technology as an answer to PayPal’s recent entry into the world of crypto, which is expected to boost adoption among its 346 million active users.
According to Mizuho Securities analyst Don Dolev, PayPal stands to rake in a whopping $2 billion from its crypto business in the next three years. Dolve added that according to a recent report, the payment giant has already seen a significant increase in clients’ engagement since it added support for crypto.
Binance exchange’s attention has been drawn to the lucrative crypto payments market, hence the launch of their latest retail app. Other than simply facilitating the buying and trading of crypto, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange now wants to actively promote the use of digital assets for everyday payments.
The Zhao-founded trading platform will now hope to spark an explosion of interest from crypto users and merchants globally with its new product.
During his announcement, CZ joked that the beta launch of Binance Pay had been “quiet,” but the product will undoubtedly transform the digital assets industry by enabling easier crypto payments.
Binance Grows Its Product Suite
The unveiling of Binance Pay during the virtual Binance Blockchain Week now adds to “a basket of products’ offered by the exchange. This product will complement the previously unveiled Binance Card, which allows users to convert crypto to fiat during purchases.
Unlike the physical debit card, Binance Pay facilitates fund transfers via a QR scanner in the app; Binancians will need to sign up for the app from their wallets to make payments.
