In late April this year, global online payment giant Stripe returned to the cryptocurrency payment market, initially supporting USDC on the Ethereum, Solana, and Polygon networks. Now, Stripe has announced a partnership with the largest US exchange Coinbase to expand USDC payments to Base. In turn, Coinbase will add Stripe’s fiat-to-crypto purchase gateway to its wallet, allowing users to instantly purchase cryptocurrencies using credit cards and Apple Pay.
In this collaboration, Coinbase stated that it aims to increase adoption on the chain and provide faster and cheaper financial infrastructure through three key aspects:
1. Stripe will add USDC on Base to its crypto payment product, enabling the Stripe platform to transfer funds faster and cheaper to over 150 countries/regions.
2. USDC on Base will also be added to Stripe’s fiat-to-crypto purchase gateway, allowing US customers to convert fiat currency into cryptocurrencies faster than before.
3. At the same time, Coinbase will add Stripe’s fiat-to-crypto purchase gateway to its wallet, enabling people to instantly purchase cryptocurrencies using credit cards and Apple Pay.
Stripe claims that by increasing support for Base, its extensive global user network will be able to enjoy faster and cheaper transfers.
In a post by John Egan, who is responsible for Stripe’s crypto business, in late May, he expressed support for Coinbase’s developer event “Onchain Summer” in the payment track, aiming to enhance consumer payment experiences and showcase how easy it is for anyone to go on-chain. Now, Stripe officially supports Base, further realizing this goal.
It is understood that Stripe processed up to $1 trillion in transactions last year and has become the preferred payment solution for millions of businesses worldwide since its establishment. Many well-known e-commerce platforms such as Shopify, Amazon, and Etsy use Stripe for payment processing. Subscription services like Netflix and Spotify rely on Stripe’s payment system to manage user subscriptions and automated charges. Sharing economy companies like Uber and Lyft use Stripe to handle passenger payments and driver income distribution.
However, Stripe’s exploration in the cryptocurrency field has encountered setbacks. The company began supporting Bitcoin payments in 2014 but discontinued it in 2018 due to Bitcoin’s volatility and high transaction fees. Now, in April this year, Stripe returned to the cryptocurrency payment field and chose the stablecoin USDC. John Egan, Stripe’s cryptocurrency manager, stated at the time:
“We believe that in the long term, stablecoins like USDC will provide a significant infrastructure for digital commerce.”
A Stripe spokesperson added that a more detailed list supporting USDC transactions on more blockchain networks will be announced in the future.