Amazon To Accept Bitcoin Payments

Amazon Will Soon Accept Bitcoin Payments

Bitcoin, through the lightning network, will soon be available as an option to pay on Amazon and other eCommerce sites, according to reports.

Cryptocurrency payment processing company Moon said any e-wallet that is lightning-enabled can also be used through the company’s browser extension. Moon previously allowed about 250 beta users to use crypto on eCommerce sites by connecting them through exchange accounts like Coinbase.

“(The extension) will pop up a QR code and it will have the lightning invoice, which you could also copy and paste if you can’t use the QR code for some reason, and you’ll be able to pay with your favorite lightning wallet,” Moon CEO Ken Kruger told CoinDesk.

Amazon itself does not handle the bitcoin, and Kruger didn’t say which financial institutions are converting it from crypto to fiat (real currency) so that merchants receive actual money.

He added that by next year, users with the lightning feature on their browser should be able to shop from any eCommerce site.

“There’s no direct merchant integration,” Kruger said. “We’re integrating with the Visa and Mastercard networks, and we get a cut of the interchange fees that merchants pay every time they receive a credit card transaction.” The company also handles the interface and manages the payment channels.

Moon is widely regarded as having huge potential to be an anchor for crypto businesses in the next five years. The company was founded last year with only $100,000 invested through the Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator. The accelerator’s Managing Director Murat Aktihanoglu said he sees the firm’s incredible potential.

“We invested in Moon as a long-term portfolio company,” he noted.

Kruger said he wants to continue to grow the company and raise a Series A round in 2019.

“There’s a lot of opportunities to help solve some of those usability problems and get people onto the lightning network, increasing adoption in that way,” Kruger said. “We’re going to engage with other folks in the lightning community to see what people are doing, what they’re working on and if there are any significant gaps. We’d love to step in and help whenever possible.”

The company said the payment interface should be ready by April 24.