SAN JOSE, Calif.—The appeal and acceptance of Bitcoin continues to grow, with PayPal now showing a stronger interest in the cryptocurrency.
In a telling move about the future of money, PayPal has added a Bitcoin entrepreneur to its board of directors, Bitcoin Magazine reported. Fintech entrepreneur Wences Casares joined the board in January, PayPal announced. The move has been interpreted as the beginning of a new phase in PayPal’s courtship with Bitcoin, which could conceivably culminate in open adoption, sources speculated.
“We’ve entered a period of unprecedented disruption in payments and financial services driven by the mass adoption of mobile technology and the digitization of cash,” said PayPal President and CEO Dan Schulman in a statement. “Wences’ long and successful track record as an international fintech entrepreneur with a focus on next-generation payment and cryptocurrency is a perfect fit for PayPal at this time. His unique line of sight into the future of commerce is ideally aligned with PayPal’s vision of transforming the management and movement of money for people around the globe.”
The fact that cryptocurrency and the transformation of money transfer are explicitly mentioned together in PayPal’s official announcement is a telling sign, Bitcoin Magazine reported, adding that the appointment of Casares to the PayPal board of directors is yet another vote of confidence in Bitcoin’s technology.
PayPal, the leading company in Internet-based payments, had already shown interest in Bitcoin payments and the distributed blockchain technology that powers the Bitcoin network, and taken the first cautious steps toward integrating blockchain technology in its operations, Bitcoin Magazine said.