PayPal Launches PYUSD Stablecoin on Solana Blockchain
PayPal has expanded its stablecoin, PayPal USD (PYUSD), to the Solana blockchain, marking its first move beyond the Ethereum ecosystem. This strategic decision aims to leverage Solana's high transaction capacity and low fees, which significantly outperform Ethereum’s current system. Solana processes up to 65,000 transactions per second at costs as low as $0.0025, compared to Ethereum’s 15 transactions per second with higher fees. This integration aligns with PayPal’s mission to facilitate a digital currency with stable value designed for commerce and payments.
The move is also expected to enhance PYUSD's use for small and daily purchases, addressing the needs of PayPal's millions of users. Currently, PYUSD has a market value of around $400 million and a 24-hour trading volume of $12 million, positioning it behind other stablecoins like USDC and USDT. The Solana network has been the most used blockchain for stablecoin transfers, handling $1.5 trillion over the past year, surpassing Ethereum’s volume of $885 billion. Users will experience a unified balance on PayPal and Venmo wallets regardless of the blockchain holding the assets, simplifying the user experience.
Jose Fernandez da Ponte, PayPal's Senior Vice President of Blockchain, Crypto, and Digital Currencies, highlighted Solana's potential for enabling payments and peer-to-peer money movements. This partnership could bring new interest to PYUSD, which currently has around 8,600 holders on Ethereum. The integration also introduces new capabilities, such as the use of "Token Extensions" standards on Solana, enhancing the confidentiality of transfers. This development underscores PayPal's adaptability and its commitment to expanding its digital currency offerings within the competitive payments processing market.
