One of Australia’s original crypto exchanges, Independent Reserve, along with its 100%-owned offshoot Bitcoin.com.au, just became the first digital exchange sites in the local market to integrate PayPal as a funding option.

This essentially means the two sites can now offer simple and convenient deposits and withdrawals via the online payments giant. And for Independent Reserve, that means the option is now available to its more than 250,000 customers.

At a time when there are doubts about the current amenability of much of Australia’s banking sector towards the crypto industry, this is some welcome adoption news that could well help spark some engagement – in this part of the world at least – in a cooled-off market just lately.

Both Independent Reserve and Bitcoin.com.au will also integrate PayPal’s tech stack for card processing and withdrawals.

So, in some sort of nutshell, the way it will work is customers will be able to load funds into the exchange(s) from a source in the PayPal wallet, such as a bank account or card, as well to withdraw funds into their PayPal wallet from the exchanges.

And it means that customers will no longer need to leave these exchange sites to make deposits or withdrawals, which makes for a simpler transactional process.

 

The path to greater crypto adoption is ease of use and security

That subhead there is pretty much the mantra for many a crypto founder we’ve spoken with over the past couple of years, and that includes Independent Reserve CEO, Adrian Przelozny.

Regarding the PayPal integration, he reiterated that sentiment:

“Our aim is to enable easy and secure access to the cryptocurrency market for a broad range of investors.

“Adding PayPal as an option for deposits, as well as card processing via the PayPal platform, is a tremendous leap towards making crypto a mainstream asset.”

PayPal Australia’s managing director, Peter Cowan, also spoke to the simplicity of the PayPal functionality:

“To date, many digital currency exchanges have offered limited methods for how customers can deposit funds, which has made crypto purchasing and withdrawals complex for consumers.

“By integrating PayPal wallet for deposits and the PayPal platform for card processing, Independent Reserve and Bitcoin.com.au are making cryptocurrency easier for investors to access, while withdrawals to the PayPal wallet can take place in real time.”

Regarding the security aspect, from the PayPal end, the firm’s proprietary risk rules and monitoring of each transaction flow will apply to all deposits and withdrawals made via the PayPal wallet and card transactions on the exchanges.

 

‘It’s a matter of when, not if’

We’ll leave you with this final word from PayPal’s Peter Cowan, because it’s suitably bullish on a future for crypto and digital payments.

“At PayPal we believe that money will become digital – it’s a matter of when, not if. Digital currencies have the potential to drive innovation in financial technology and, as a flow on, to improve economic opportunities and financial inclusion.

“However, consumers must feel that it’s safe, secure, and convenient. That’s why PayPal supports innovation-oriented regulation of cryptocurrencies and will look to continue to provide solutions for consumers in the cryptocurrency sector.” 

Read MoreBitcoinCryptocurrency

You might be interested in