Bitcoin leaps to highest since July 2019 after PayPal opens service to cryptocurrencies
Mahi Sall, Advisor, Fintech-Bank Partnerships, Payments and Financial Inclusivity
January 25th, 2023
Mahi Sall is the CEO & Founder of FinXpair, a Berlin-based strategic advisory boutique firm focu[...]
Bitcoin price hits record high for 2020 after PayPal finally adds cryptocurrency
Business Insider | Ben Winck | Oct 21, 2020
Bitcoin leaps to highest since July 2019 after PayPal opens service to cryptocurrencies
- Bitcoin spiked as much as 8% higher on Wednesday after PayPal revealed it will soon allow users to buy, sell, and hold the popular cryptocurrency.
- The leap pushed bitcoin to an intraday peak of $12,817.17, its highest level since July 2019.
- PayPal's Wednesday announcement marks the latest move by a financial-services giant to accept cryptocurrencies.
- Billionaire investor and bitcoin bull Michael Novogratz deemed PayPal's move "the biggest news of the year in crypto."
Bitcoin soared as much as 8% on Wednesday after PayPal announced it would open its service to cryptocurrency purchases and sales.
The rally placed bitcoin at an intraday high of $12,817.17, well above its previous 2020 record of $12,473. The Wednesday peak marks bitcoin's highest level since July 2019.
See: Square’s Major Bitcoin Buy: Puts 1% of Total Assets Worth $50 Million in BTC
The world's largest cryptocurrency is up more than 11% this week alone. Bitcoin broke through the key $12,000 level on Tuesday, and the PayPal news adds more fuel to the upswing.
PayPal said Wednesday it will allow its users to buy, hold, and sell cryptocurrencies from their accounts starting in a few weeks. More than 26 million merchants using the platform will also be able to accept cryptocurrencies as a funding source, according to a press release.
The company's acceptance of cryptocurrencies comes after other mainstream financial names adopt the previously ignored asset class. Square scooped up 4,709 bitcoins for $50 million earlier in October, saying bitcoin can become "a more ubiquitous currency" in the future. Fidelity rolled out its first bitcoin-focused fund back in August, allowing its wealthier clients to back the volatile tokens.
Billionaire investor Mike Novogratz praised PayPal's move on Wednesday, deeming it "the biggest news of the year in crypto." The former hedge fund manager serves as chief executive for Galaxy Investment Partners, a crypto-focused investment firm.
Novogratz has long pushed for widespread adoption of digital currencies, and said in a tweet that PayPal's action marks an "exciting day" for cryptocurrency advocates.
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Bitcoin price hits record high for 2020 after PayPal finally adds cryptocurrency
The Independent (UK) | Anthony Cuthbertson | Oct 21, 2020
Analysts say coronavirus pandemic has also helped cryptocurrency more than double in value since March
The price of bitcoin hit a record high for 2020 on Wednesday, after PayPal announced plans to integrate cryptocurrency into its online payment platform.
Bitcoin’s price rose by more than 5 per cent following the news, taking its total gains since last week above $1,000. It is currently trading above $12,400.
PayPal said customers will be able to pay using bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies at the 26 million merchants on its network from next year.
See: PayPal is going after the big banks
As the world’s number one online payments platform, bitcoin’s reach will extend to its roughly 346 million customers worldwide.
“Our global reach, digital payments expertise, two-sided network, and rigorous security and compliance controls provide us with the opportunity, and the responsibility, to help facilitate the understanding, redemption and interoperability of these new instruments of exchange,” said PayPal CEO Dan Schulman.
Bitcoin remains a long way off the all-time price highs seen in late 2017, when its value briefly rose to $20,000, but the latest gains come just seven months after bitcoin was trading below $5,000.
Some analysts have attributed price gains since March to global economic uncertainty brought about by the coronavirus pandemic.
“Ongoing - and heightening - global political, economic and social turbulence suggests that there will be a price surge before the end of the year,” Nigel Green, CEO of financial advisory firm deVere Group, told The Independent.
“Like gold, bitcoin can be expected to retain its value or even grow in value when other assets fall, therefore enabling investors to reduce their exposure to losses.
Investors will increase exposure to decentralised, non-sovereign, secure digital currencies, such as bitcoin, to help shield them from the potential issues in traditional markets.
See: Samsung Is Quietly Becoming A Major Bitcoin, Crypto And Blockchain Player
“There’s a growing sense that we’re set to experience a mini-boom similar to that seen at the end of 2017.”
Other analysts warned that bitcoin’s volatile nature means investors should remain weary of any sudden price jumps.
Simon Peters, a multi-asset analyst at online trading platform eToro, told The Independent: “Emphasis will be on how the price reacts at $12,000, given we haven't convincingly stayed above the threshold this year. Before investors look to the next bull run, we need to see the price remain above $12,000 for an extended period of time.”
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