Payments processor Zebedee says it has opened its API to all developers and digital platforms.
“It’s a huge next step in moving money globally, through apps, games, services and the real world,” the company announced Monday (May 15).
The change allows video game, social media, FinTech and AdTech platforms to easily integrate Bitcoin Lightning payments, Zebedee said in a news release.
According to the release, developers previously had to sign up and undergo a manual review to access the tools needed to add Zebedee payments to their project. Now, they can skip this step with a new system that lets them open an account for free and begin working with the company’s payments technology right away.
“We wanted to make sure that our offer covers all possible projects and caters to developers of any size, from individuals and small teams, to large businesses and enterprises,” the announcement adds. “That’s why we’ve come up with a tiered offering with diverse transaction and volume allowances and project count limits, each with its own pricing.”
There’s also a completely free option, the company noted, as part of its “vision of expanding global monetary freedom.”
Speaking to PYMNTS’ Karen Webster last year, Zebedee Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer Andre Neves said bitcoin is the perfect currency to provide standardization when it comes to transferring value.
And it doesn’t have to be something as complicated as a video game or metaverse. “We’re in a virtual world and we can talk and chat and stream 8K video quality, but we’re unable to transact value in this conversation,” Neves said.
On a worldwide scale, one of the key reasons for this is that each jurisdiction has its own currency and its own laws, Neves told Webster.
“So standardizing a money for the world and for the virtual world, is really important — you really need that medium of exchange with the ability to move value without needing to have some foray into foreign exchange.”
As a digitally native currency bitcoin “provides that capability regardless of any geographical or real-world constraint,” Neves said.
“So regardless of where in the world you find yourself and where I find myself, we’re able to transact with the same sort of monetary standard. Powering virtual worlds and real worlds with the same money is a very powerful thing. And I think we’re just scratching the surface of what it means.”