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EBay Ads Tell World It Will (Finally) Accept ‘Virtual Currency’

Esther Kim | May 13, 2019 | 04:10

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Cryptocurrency users were celebrating fresh rumors about a major adoption push this week after hints suggested eBay might accept Bitcoin and altcoins.

eBay: ‘Virtual Currency Is Happening’

According to photographs of marketing material from the ongoing Consensus 2019 conference in New York, eBay, which has 180 million users, is actively pursuing crypto payments.

One of the annual event’s major sponsors this year, it would appear the giant online marketplace is deliberately targeting attendees’ imagination.

“Virtual Currency. It’s happening on eBay,” one placard reads, without giving any further information.

"Leaked from Consensus, eBay possibly announcing the support of cryptocurrencies on their website." – @PatronsOfTheMoon Telegram. #share #bitcoin #cryptocurrency pic.twitter.com/xqbpdysUic

— wolf (@ImNotTheWolf) May 12, 2019

The choice of slogan worked; after the photographs went online, social media and mainstream media alike ignited a debate which continues to engulf the cryptocurrency community.

Theories range from Bitcoin acceptance to even an exclusive deal with Binance Coin, the native token of cryptocurrency exchange Binance.

‘Just’ A Third Party Deal?

As Australian news magazine Micky notes, however, the reality could be somewhat more sober: eBay, it suggested, may be partnering with a payments platform that accepts various cryptocurrencies on behalf of merchants and pays them in fiat.

That platform is UTRUST, a company which last September gained former eBay and PayPal executive Sanja Kon to front its global partnership expansion.

“It’s not hard to imagine that one of the first partnership Kon would attempt to make would be at the company she was a senior executive at for five years,” the publication wrote, likewise linking to social media.

UTRUST supports Bitcoin, Litecoin and Ripple among various other coins, while also spawning its own native token, which would likely feature in any form of acceptance deal.

Executives have yet to comment on the latest rumors, which follow a period of rapid expansion for the startup, the user wallet for which remains in beta testing.

“I’m constantly fascinated by how technological innovation impacts our daily lives, and in particular, the rapid evolution of crypto payments,” Kon said at the time she joined UTRUST.

No Joy From PayPal

Kon’s enthusiasm for crypto meanwhile appears increasingly at odds with her old employer. As Bitcoinist reported last week, PayPal remains decidedly pro-Blockchain but hands-off on Bitcoin.

“We have teams working on blockchain and cryptocurrency as well, and we want to take part in that in whatever form that takes in the future – I just think it’s a little early on right now,” CFO John Rainey told Yahoo! Finance in an interview.

EBay has nonetheless hinted about its interest for a long time, with rumors of Bitcoin acceptance likewise coming in December 2017, when the cryptocurrency hit its peak of $20,000.

What do you think about eBay potentially accepting cryptocurrency? Let us know in the comments below!

Images via Shutterstock