Cryptocurrency continues its ascent to the mainstream as Venmo announced on Tuesday morning that users can now buy, sell, and hold crypto on the popular payment app. Venmo is used by more than 70 million customers, and now all of them have the ability to join the crypto craze, with Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and Bitcoin Cash all available within the app. As with other transactions, you can share every crypto purchase and sale on your feed.
In order to “start your crypto journey,” open the menu in the top-right corner of the Venmo app and tap on the Crypto option. If you do not see that option, then the new feature has yet to hit your app, and you should check the App Store or Google Play for an update. Once the option is available, you will be able to buy and sell cryptocurrency using funds from your balance in Venmo or with money from a linked credit card or bank account. All cryptocurrency transactions are handled through the Venmo app, so you won’t need to jump around between services.
This announcement comes just months after PayPal (Venmo’s parent company) brought cryptocurrency to its platform and weeks after it started settling transactions with crypto in the PayPal app.
“Crypto on Venmo is a new way for the Venmo community to start exploring the world of crypto, within the Venmo environment they trust and rely on as a key component of their everyday financial lives,” said Darrell Esch, SVP and GM for Venmo. “No matter where you are in your cryptocurrency journey, crypto on Venmo will help our community to learn and explore cryptocurrencies on a trusted platform and directly in the app they know and love. Our goal is to provide our customers with an easy-to-use platform that simplifies the process of buying and selling cryptocurrencies and demystifies some of the common questions and misconceptions that consumers may have.”
Last October, Venmo surveyed 2,217 customers as part of the 2020 Venmo Customer Behavior Study to determine how all their demographic, financial, and purchase behaviors were changing, and what the company could do to help them adapt. They found that more than 30% of Venmo users had already started buying cryptocurrencies or equities, and 20% had started during the pandemic. Now they have yet another method by which to acquire it.
Cryptocurrencies are incredibly volatile and increasingly expensive, with Bitcoin having jumped over $64,000 per coin and dropped below $54,000 per coin in the last week alone. If that’s not enough to convince you to steer clear of the crypto market, you can start with as little as $1 on Venmo, just to get your feet wet.
Bringing cryptocurrency to Venmo makes crypto even harder to avoid, but if you are looking for an even more secure way to store your crypto, check out our review of the Gray CORAZON hardware wallet.
