The financial services company Stripe and crypto startup OpenNode have collaborated to establish a new app that will permit its customers to accept Bitcoin payments. Through the app, Stripe users will be able to convert all of their incoming payments as well as any balance they have into Bitcoin. There are plans to launch a new Stripe apps marketplace in the next few weeks that will include this service as part of a public beta program. In order to settle payments, OpenNode utilizes the Lightning Network, which aims to make Bitcoin transactions faster and cheaper.
Within the app, there will be an option for businesses to check on the status of their bitcoin wallets and conversion rates at a glance. As part of the application, businesses will also be able to link directly with their banks, thus opening the possibility to convert Bitcoins to Fiat currency at any time.
Stripe has made another step into the crypto space with the OpenNode app, after announcing a stablecoin payments option through Stripe Connect to Twitter creators in April. In the wake of Block Inc., PayPal Holdings Inc. and Checkout.com’s success in crypto, Stripe reinstated its efforts. FTX and Blockchain.com both hired crypto talent last year, and the company started assisting their online billing and customer verification process in March.
With its partnership with OpenNode, a Bitcoin centric company that raised $20 million at a $220 million valuation in February, Stripe demonstrates a renewed interest in Bitcoin, the world’s most commonly held digital currency. While Stripe had begun accepting Bitcoin payments in 2012, it ended support for the cryptocurrency in 2018. The company cited slow transaction times, rising fees, and a lack of customer interest in cryptocurrency as reasons for this decision.
Since Stripe now supports Bitcoin again, its reintroduction to the service may broaden its popularity. As the price of digital currencies decline following the collapse of the TerraUSD stablecoin, Bitcoin’s adoption is seen as a positive development by crypto enthusiasts. Over the past 30 days, Bitcoin’s price has fallen 26%.
