PayPal is shifting Aussie dollars onto crypto exchanges

afr.com:

PayPal will make it easier to invest in crypto as major banks remain cool on the space, under a deal with Independent Reserve that will allow its customers to use a credit card to send Australian dollars to its digital currency exchange.

Independent Reserve, which has 250,000 customers and holds crypto balances of $1 billion, said the new “on ramp” will support customers looking to buy cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ether and Ripple, including through its bitcoin.com.au brand.

Customers will also be able to fund Independent Reserve directly from their PayPal wallet and use PayPal to withdraw crypto funds off the exchange.

Adrian Przelozny, CEO of Independent Reserve, and Peter Cowan, managing director at PayPal Australia, in Sydney on Wednesday. 

PayPal, which separately announced a US-dollar stablecoin earlier this month, is keen to support the growth of digital currencies. The US payments giant sees a future where they become part of the payment landscape, not just a speculative investment.

“Money is digitising, and blockchain and digital currency is part of that. So building bridges between the old fiat world and the digital world is important. Our global view is more money will move into digital forms, and this is something PayPal is keen to be involved in,” said Peter Cowan, managing director of PayPal Australia.

The view comes as major banks have been growing cautious on crypto since the FTX collapse, including introducing tougher limits to slow down the movement of dollars onto digital exchanges, citing growing levels of cryptocurrency scams.

PayPal has conducted extensive due diligence on Independent Reserve’s systems and processes for storing client funds and crypto custody. This involves using segregated