Cryptocurrencies
BitPay Launches BitPay Send Feature for Businesses
It’s no secret that the typical employment model has been upended in recent years. Not only has the gig economy continued to grow but, due in part to the COVID-19 pandemic, remote work is at a new high. With that in mind, BitPay recently launched a new tool called BitPay Send that could also change the way that workers and contractors are paid.
The mass-payment tool allows businesses to run payroll, pay vendors, and more using crypto. To use BitPay Send, users will first deposit funds in fiat currency and then submit the payouts they wish to make. Then, the amount sent will be converted and reach the recipient’s crypto wallet. Currently, BitPay supports payment processing and cryptocurrency settlement for merchants in more than 200 countries and territories. In terms of fees, senders pay just 1% of the transaction amount.
Speaking to the benefits of cryptocurrency payments, BitPay CEO Stephen Pair explained, “Blockchain payment adoption is growing because it offers an easy way to send and receive payments on a global scale. Traditional international payment methods are cumbersome, costly and slow.” Pair added, “With BitPay Send, companies can make mass payouts without having to buy, own or manage crypto and their recipients receive payments quicker and at a lower cost.”
Among those currently using the BitPay service is AdGate. According to president Dan Sapozhnikov, the company came across the solution after several of their affiliates requested to be paid in Bitcoin — especially those located outside of the United States — but AdGate themselves didn’t want to have to hold crypto themselves. Commenting on how this led them to BitPay, Sapozhnikov stated, “The BitPay team worked with us on integration and there was minimal training since pushing a button is all we need to do when we are ready to pay. With BitPay Send, we are able to get our affiliates paid in a matter of minutes and not days.”
BitPay Send’s official debut comes at a time when Bitcoin itself is experiencing a bit of a renaissance. After months of toiling around the $10,000 mark, $BTC has recently topped $16,000 and, as of this writing, sits just below that threshold. This surge could certainly renew interest in the asset and lead to greater demand for a service such as BitPay.
Although the thought of Bitcoin payroll may sound niche now, it may not sound as crazy in the coming years. In fact, with more workers now operating from home and from remote locations, the speed and security of crypto payments may prove increasingly attractive. All in all, BitPay and their Send feature seem to be continuing the trend of making cryptocurrency more accessible and showing off blockchain’s benefits in the process.