Jared T.
One of the world's foremost payment processors, Stripe has expanded its reach to include cryptocurrencies over the past few months.
In April, the company unveiled what could be the first of many products that will form its new cryptocurrency suite, thanks to a partnership with Twitter.
Expanding Payment Options Content Creators
Two weeks ago, Stripe and Twitter rolled out a cryptocurrency payment feature that integrates with Stripe Connect. The two companies said in an official announcement that the feature would allow a select group of Twitter content creators to receive payments using USDC - one of the most popular stablecoins.
Stripe and Twitter's payment feature is fully integrated with Polygon - a layer-two software build offering access to the Ethereum blockchain's resources without the burden of Ethereum gas fees. Polygon ensures optimal transaction speed and low fees, making it the perfect platform for those looking to make payments and seamlessly integrate crypto.
In its announcement, Stripe said it designed the new product to keep pace with content creation and global connection. The payment giant pointed out that, though content creators now work and connect with customers and fans globally, payment channels remain highly limited.
The new product ensures a more accessible payment channel for creators. The crypto payouts for Stripe Connect will offer easier payment methods and optimize earnings, conveniences many have come to expect when working with crypto.
Stripe said they plan to expand support to over 120 countries by the end of the year. The product would also become accessible to many more content creators. Esther Crawford, Twitter's head of product for creators, shared excitement about increasing the number of channels through which creators can get paid.
"Twitter is where people go to have conversations about what's happening. We're focused on helping creators who drive those conversations earn money and connect with their audiences in new ways. We're excited to begin offering crypto payouts to creators via Stripe, so they have more choice in how they get paid," Crawford said.
After A Lengthy Separation, Stripe Is All-In On Crypto
The new payout channel is just the latest in a long line of crypto-related products coming from Stripe. The company was among the first payment-focused services to announce support for crypto, processing Bitcoin payments as early as 2014.
However, issues with transaction speeds and costs forced the company to end crypto support in 2018. Stripe made good on its promise to return to the crypto space last year. A job listing published around October 2021 confirmed that Stripe was looking to hire four "Staff Engineers" with crypto experience.
Guillaume Poncin, Stripe's engineering lead, said on Twitter that he was looking for engineers to help the $100 billion-dollar company build the future of Web3 payments. Expanding on Poncin's Tweet, Stripe co-founder John Collison pointed out that the company had already seen significant growth and exciting developments in the crypto space, so they believed it prudent to return.
The first sign of Stripe's renewed focus on crypto payments was support for non-fungible token (NFT) payments and digital assets via fiat currencies.
In March, the payment giant partnered with several crypto firms - including FTX and its American subsidiary FTX US, Nifty Gateway, and Blockchain.com - to enable businesses to accept fiat payments for crypto using its application program interface (API).
Using the API, businesses would also be able to pay their users in fiat, create digital wallets, and leverage know-your-customer (KYC) solutions to detect and block fraudulent transactions.
Speaking on the partnership, FTX's strategy lead, Tristan Yver, said they expect to attract a broader audience by making crypto purchases and interactions with digital assets easier across the board.