BitPay, the crypto payment processor that has suffered a torrid last few months, put some smiles back on faces on Monday when it revealed that merchants on its platform will soon be able to accept ETH as payment in addition to BTC and BCH. The announcement came in the wake of accusations that the company was withholding donations intended for reporters of the Hong Kong Free Press movement and will be a welcome dose of good news for the platform that has seen users complain about a bug that stole their private keys and a botched system upgrade in the last 9 months.
Soon BitPay merchants will be able to accept Ether payments from #Ethereum users around the world: https://t.co/2nXIDhIN6y #ETH pic.twitter.com/IyqHnxpo1F
— BitPay (@BitPay) September 16, 2019
Rollout Expected in “Coming Weeks”
Bitpay announced the expansion of their offer via a press release, in which they said that ETH could be used right across the BitPay product range:
…customers will soon be able to safely, securely, and compliantly accept Ethereum. Businesses using BitPay for payment processing can accept Ethereum for purchases without the need for any integration or enhancements. Additionally, wallet users will be able to store and use Ethereum in a BitPay wallet and BitPay Prepaid Visa Card holders can top up debit cards.
Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin recorded his pleasure at the addition of his token to the platform, saying that it “…truly opens up a new world of possibilities for the Ethereum ecosystem.” BitPay’s existing merchants, which include Microsoft, Newegg, Dish Networks, FanDuel and Avnet, will see Ethereum functionality embedded in the “coming weeks” according to BitPay.
BitPay’s Much-needed Boost
BitPay was in need of some cheer following a 12-month spell that has seen some customers mistake an upgrade for account freezing due to an apparent lack of communication, those Hong Kong Free Press accusations, and a huge bug that could have allowed a hacker to steal all users’ private keys. Hopefully with this particular upgrade BitPay can concentrate on a positive end to 2019.
