Stripe is getting back into the bitcoin business

Stripe is the backbone for a lot of the best e-commerce platforms and online services, offering a huge array of tools for fast, easy payments. 

Not content to rest on its laurels, Stripe hs now announced a number of upgrades and new servces at its recent developer conference, including ability for merchants to convert fiat currency – that is, dollars and pounds – into bitcoin and back again.

The ability to do so comes through a partnership with bitcoin payments startup OpenNote, with an app appearing in Stripe's new Stripe Apps section to facilitate the transactions.

The Apps marketplace, detailed by Stripe in a blog post, means that third-party developers can now build tools directly into Stripe, starting with over 50 companies, including Dropbox and Mailchimp.

Stripe's APIs are already the backbone for so much that happens on the web, at least in terms of payments, and these updates will only increase that.

To bitcoin and beyond 

Using the OpenNote app, merchants on Stripe can now quickly and easily convert fiat currency to bitcoin in near real-time, with the option to convert a set amount to the cryptocurrency. 

There is a dashboard that offers a view into their bitcoin holdings and conversion rates, alongside other information, and OpenNote will let merchants directly link their bank accounts for withdrawals. 

Given that crypto is crashing, the timing of this announcement is interesting and shows that Stripe's leadership believe that bitcoin at least is here to stay. 

Whether that prediction works out remains to be seen, but in the meantime merchants across the digital world can now add one more payment option and store their funds in bitcoin.

• Store your currency securely with the best bitcoin wallets

Via Bitcoin Magazine