The payment app Chicago-based Strike has integrated with global e-commerce giant Shopify to enable merchants to accept Bitcoin (BTC) payments via the Bitcoin Lightning Network..
The Lightning Network (LN) is a Bitcoin layer 2 scaling solution designed to facilitate faster and cheaper transactions..
Strike CEO Jack Mallers revealed the new integration on stage at the Miami Bitcoin 2022 conference on Thursday. The move could allow Shopify’s nearly two million global merchants to accept bitcoin payments denominated in US dollars.. However, the only business partner cited in the official Strike release was Warren Lotas, a Los Angeles-based streetwear brand, and that site was down at the time of this writing.
Shopify is the 18th largest e-commerce company in the world, with annual revenue of $4.6 billion, according to market research site Macrotrends.. Their service allows merchants to create an online store in 175 different countries.
“If I want to walk into a whole foods, a McDonald’s and use a different payment network, its this thing… As the merchant, you can receive in #BTCtake Starbucks points, I don’t care.” – Jack Mallers pic.twitter.com/6sW4U6cvaJ
— Bitcoin 2022 (@TheBitcoinConf) April 7, 2022
“If I want to walk into a Whole Foods or a McDonald’s and use a different payment network, it’s this… As a merchant, you can get paid in BTC, take Starbucks points, I don’t care.” – Jack Mallers pic.twitter.com/6sW4U6cvaJ
The official Bitcoin 2022 Twitter account claimed that the integration was already live and cited that Mallers criticized the modern payment system, which began in 1949 with the Diners Club card.:
“Any online merchant using Shopify can accept payments without the 1949 boomer network, receive it instantly, final cash, no middle man, no 3% commission”
According to Mallers, one of the main advantages of using Bitcoin through Lightning is that payments are settled almost instantly instead of the “late settlement, two to 15 days” he cited as a drawback of current common electronic payment methods. He added that instant settlements help both consumers and merchants complete accounting work and know their accurate balances more quickly.
mallers too wakefulness Strike’s partnership with the Blackhawk payment network, reportedly the world’s largest point-of-sale provider. The company has annual revenues of $2.5 billion, and its website states that it has products in more than 400,000 points of sale in 28 countries.
Bitcoin 2022 is already a hotbed of rumours, not just because of the Bitcoin bull statue that was unveiled before the opening events, but because of Robinhood’s announcement of the launch of its long-awaited crypto wallet for two million customers on the waiting list. The wallet will also integrate LN.
The conference has yet to trigger a move in BTC price as the largest crypto by market cap is up just 0.54% in the last 24 hours and is trading at $43,594 at the time of writing, according to data from Cointelegraph.
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