The Student News Site of Sonoma State University

Sonoma State Star

The Student News Site of Sonoma State University

Sonoma State Star

The Student News Site of Sonoma State University

Sonoma State Star

PayPal now accepting Bitcoin transactions

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PayPal has announced it will be adding Bitcoin as an additional viable form of payment on their money transfer platform. Bitcoin is a decentralized currency that uses energy miners to solve highly complex equations that produce Bitcoins. Bitcoin has garnered a lot of attention in recent months as its price continues to climb.

COURTESY // SIMPLE FX

COURTESY // SIMPLE FX

Starting from almost nothing and now being worth upwards of $50,000 per coin, Bitcoin is now actually being accepted as a form of payment. For the Bitcoin owner, this could finally mean a simple transaction through PayPal instead of the tedious transfer processes the cryptocurrency currently requires. With PayPal right there to help facilitate the transfer into an automated process, making it easier than ever to use it as a common currency.  

There are some concerns, however, that Bitcoin may be removed from trade similar to how gold was banned. Former President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed an executive order in 1933 that prevented people from hoarding or using gold for monetary purposes as a way to prevent the money supply from increasing. All gold was turned over to the Federal Reserve Bank at that time, taking gold out of rotation. Theoretically, President Joe Biden could remove Bitcoin from rotation, seizing the cryptocurrency and use it to cover the US debts. 

If the government seized cryptocurrency, it could be a signal of a shift in monetary value, Bitcoin possibly becoming the standard. Unlike gold, which is malleable, Bitcoin is algorithmic and verifiable, it is certified. Due to its decentralized location though, it would be more difficult for the government to seize as the currency.

Tesla is also accepting Bitcoin payments which is not surprising considering Elon Musk creator of Tesla and also recently bought $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin. It is also very possible that as inflation occurs cryptocurrency including Bitcoin, could become a new standard currency. However, that would mean people would have to buy into that idea of this digital dollar and would need to find ways to acquire it at the currently inflated price. It is possible that Bitcoin continues to make jumps considering the continual inflation of the US dollar and its value, the Bitcoin price could continue to skyrocket. 

People are searching for other currencies to diversify portfolios, while the dollar is still strong, it is a good idea to diversify. Since the United States is a debt economy, it could, over time, be a potentially good thing and strengthen the dollar. The dollar has largely remained a fiat currency, meaning it is derived based on faith and credit. While many will always have faith in the dollar, it will most likely maintain good credit, as well as considering the massive assets that back the dollar up.

Paypal will be accepting dollars and Bitcoin, this is big as new cryptocurrencies will continue to emerge and hopefully in the future be used as alternate currency as well. For now, the trail starts with Bitcoin. The light at the end of the tunnel is that now people have multiple options of accepted currency, people can pay or trade in Gold, Silver, Platinum, Dollars, Bitcoin, Etherium, Litecoin, Dogecoin, and so many others. Although they may have to transfer precious metals or cryptocurrencies into dollars, PayPal now conducts transactions accepting both Dollars and Bitcoins. This makes Bitcoin easier to use for payment via the PayPal platform.

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