PayPal could be developing a new stablecoin called PayPal Coin. The new coin and its logo was spotted alongside another called Neo in its iOS app, but representatives said the logo was “leftovers from an internal hackathon by the company’s blockchain, crypto, and digital currencies division.”
Upon discovering the coin, The Tape Drive’s Steve Moser reached out to Jose Fernandez da Ponte (SVP of crypto and digital currencies at PayPal), who confirmed that PayPal is considering a stablecoin. “We are exploring a stable coin; if and when we seek to move forward, we will, of course, work closely with relevant regulators,” he said.
PayPal entered the crytocurrency business in 2020, allowing users to buy and sell Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other tokens, with spending limits increased to $100,000 in 2021. Stablecoins are backed by the value of a currency or commodity. The PayPal Coin will reportedly be backed by USD.
Meta (formerly Facebook) was also developing its own stablecoin, Diem, but changed direction after resistance from international regulators. It is now testing a digital wallet called Novi for money transfers via WhatsApp.
Since we introduced the Novi pilot just six weeks ago, we’ve been able to test and learn which features and functionality are most important to people, and focus our efforts on making those even better.
— Stephane Kasriel (@skasriel) December 8, 2021
Source: The Tape Drive (via Engadget)