PayPal and Venmo Add Chainlink and Solana to Cryptocurrency Offerings

PayPal and Venmo users can now buy, hold, sell and transfer two more cryptocurrencies — Chainlink (LINK) and Solana (SOL) — directly in their accounts.

Parent company PayPal Holdings said in a Friday (April 4) press release that it added these tokens in response to feedback from customers.

Users of the digital wallets will start to see LINK and SOL available for purchase over the next few weeks, according to the release.

The Chainlink platform is commonly used for data, compute and cross-chain interoperability, while SOL enables users to participate in the Solana platform’s ecosystem that includes decentralized finance, payments, games and infrastructure networks, per the release.

“Offering more tokens on PayPal and Venmo provides users with greater flexibility, choice and access to digital currencies,” May Zabaneh, vice president of product, blockchain, crypto and digital currencies at PayPal, said in the release. “This allows for more options to buy, send or spend within our trusted PayPal and Venmo wallets.”

PayPal announced in October 2020 that it would start allowing customers to buy, hold and sell cryptocurrency directly from their PayPal accounts.

Dan Schulman, who was president and CEO of PayPal at the time, said in an October 2020 press release that the shift to digital forms of currency was inevitable.

“We are eager to work with central banks and regulators around the world to offer our support, and to meaningfully contribute to shaping the role that digital currencies will play in the future of global finance and commerce,” Schulman said.

At the time of the launch of this offering, PayPal supported cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, ethereum, bitcoin cash and litecoin, PYMNTS reported at the time.

In September, PayPal began enabling U.S. merchants — except those in New York state — to buy, hold and sell cryptocurrency directly from their PayPal business accounts. It also enabled PayPal business account holders to send and receive supported cryptocurrency tokens to and from external blockchain accounts.

“Business owners have increasingly expressed a desire for the same cryptocurrency capabilities available to consumers,” Jose Fernandez de Ponte, senior vice president of blockchain, cryptocurrency and digital currencies at PayPal, said at the time in a press release. “We’re excited to meet that demand by delivering this new offering, empowering them to engage with digital currencies effortlessly.”

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