The Coinbase card added to the wallets can be used to buy
everyday goods with digital currencies, the biggest US cryptocurrency exchange
said in a blog post.
The company said it will automatically convert all
cryptocurrency to US Dollars and transfer the funds to a customer's Coinbase
Card for use in purchases and ATM withdrawals.
It also said users can earn crypto rewards on their shopping
when a Coinbase Card is used with Apple Pay or Google Pay.
Coinbase's move comes after PayPal said it would allow US
consumers to use their cryptocurrency holdings to pay millions of its online
merchants globally, significantly boosting use of digital assets in everyday
commerce.
It was also reported last week that PayPal is planning to
allow users to withdraw cryptocurrency to third party wallets. The San Jose,
California-based company at present does not let users move cryptocurrency
holdings off its platform. Speaking at CoinDesk's Consensus 2021 conference,
PayPal's blockchain, crypto, and digital currencies business unit head
Fernandez da Ponte said, “They want to bring their crypto to us so they can use
it in commerce, and we want them to be able to take the crypto they acquired
with us and take it to the destination of their choice.
Last year, PayPal said that US account holders will be able
to buy, sell, and hold cryptocurrencies in their PayPal wallets. PayPal planned
to expand the service to its peer-to-peer payment app Venmo and some other
countries in the first half of 2021.
© Reuters