Coinbase has released Coinbase Commerce, a new service that enables ecommerce websites to accept Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum and Litecoin payments. The service is available worldwide and pushes payments in multiple cryptocurrencies directly into a user-controlled wallet.
Coinbase has offered merchant products in the past, however they have always been fully centralized. Coinbase Commerce is not a hosted service, meaning that ecommerce stores would have control over their own cryptocurrency.
The application’s user interface includes a dashboard, and links to balances, payments, checkouts and settings. On the dashboard, merchants can get a quick look at their balance on each of the four digital currencies, as well as their fiat value, and recent payments.
The Coinbase software can be integrated directly into an ecommerce website’s checkout pages as an added payment option. Although there have been some attempts at this functionality by smaller providers in the past, crypto just didn’t have he widespread adoption that it has today. With “Bitcoin Mania” on the rise, it’s likely that we’ll see more transactions made using digital currencies. Although fees are still way too high for Bitcoin transactions, we’d expect LiteCoin, Ethereum and Bitcoin Cash transactions to start moving now, with Bitcoin following shortly after Lightning Network kicks into full gear.
Ecommerce is expected to make up 17% of all US retail sales by 2022. Amazon is expected to be a major driver in this growth, with 83% of US adults with internet access having made a purchase on the Amazon marketplace in 2016, and 55% having used Amazon as a research tool to inform their purchasing decisioins. It is only logical for Amazon to explore digital currency solutions. Otherwise, we may see an exodus from Amazon, towards smaller e-commerce websites that offer more flexibility with purchases.
Of note, companies like Newegg and Overstock have been accepting Bitcoin transactions for a while now. Overstock went so far as to launch an ICO for their blockchain-based token, tZero. It is possible that these merchants might consider sharing their technology with the community as well, in order to compete against Coinbase. Or, they may consider switching their payment solutions to the one provided by Coinbase, in order to provide users with a recognizable checkout experience.
Coinbase has successfully integrated their commerce solution into Shopify, one of the most popular multi-channel ecommerce platforms. They’re working on other integrations, too, so we’d expect versions available for other popular shopping carts, like Magento, WooCommerce and possibly some of the enterprise level solutions.
The application works by first querying the user for their name and email address. At that point, a wallet address is generated for the user to copy, with a 15-minute timer to complete the transaction. QR codes are also accepted.
With news that Bittrex plans to start accepting fiat transactions, this commerce application is a smart way for Coinbase to maintain market share, particularly if they plan to keep their selection of cryptocurrencies limited to a few popular choices. The release of this application may also push other digital currency exchanges to offer alternatives if they want to survive. Coinbase already has adoption on Shopify, giving them a tremendous edge over their competitors if a large number of websites begin to integrate their solution.
To get started with Coinbase Commerce, and to see a demo, visit this page: https://commerce.coinbase.com/
Daniel is an experienced and dynamic entrepreneur with a demonstrated history of launching and operating successful businesses. Skilled in Business Strategy, Technical Consulting, Coaching, Sales, Entrepreneurship, Team Building, and Public Speaking.
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