In a bid to strengthen its move into the cryptocurrency world, payments provider PayPal has announced the acquisition of crypto security firm Curv.
The Tel-Aviv based start-up's business proposition is safeguarding its customers' digital assets through an innovative method of cryptography.
According to a report on Decrypt, the deal was allegedly worth $200 million, and while PayPal may not be interested in being a custodian for other businesses' and people's cryptocurrency assets, it is interested in using Curv to add an extra security layer for its own digital assets.
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Late last year, the company enabled its US customers to buy, store and sell Bitcoin and a handful of other cryptocurrencies. The caveat is that customers aren't allowed to take the crypto out of PayPal's system, for example into a cold storage wallet. Still, PayPal has seen the interest for its crypto services surging and has promised to bring the service globally in the first half of the year.
Less fees for merchants
"During our conversations with Curv's team, we've been impressed by their technical talent, entrepreneurial spirit, and the thinking behind the technology they've built in the last few years. We're excited to welcome the Curv team to PayPal,” said Jose Fernandez da Ponte, vice president and general manager for blockchain, crypto and digital currencies at PayPal.
The announcement of the new service signaled the direction in which PayPal was heading, and that was to enable its customers, many of which are merchants and small to medium-sized businesses, easier access to the world of cryptocurrencies. One of the biggest advantages of cryptocurrencies over traditional, fiat currencies, are substantially lower fees that, when multiple middlemen such as banks or payments processing service providers get involved, may go relatively high.
The acquisition is expected to be completed in the first half of 2021.
Decrypt also added that PayPal has been negotiating a deal for almost a year, and that the company’s founder, Itay Malinger, will remain at PayPal. There was no word on specific roles or titles.
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