The cryptocurrency exchange’s merchants payments offering, Coinbase Commerce, added support for the dollar-pegged stablecoin USD Coin (USDC). Coinbase announced in a blog post Monday that businesses can now receive payments in USDC from customers “in minutes with zero transaction fees” and no chargebacks.
“Unlike accepting credit card payments, merchants can accept USD Coin without geographical limitations or the need for a traditional bank account,” the firm said. In addition, Coinbase stated that by accepting stablecoins, it allows merchants to benefit from cryptocurrency transactions while avoiding the volatility characteristic of un-pegged digital assets.
According to a recent report by the European Central Bank, cryptocurrencies don’t have significant implications on monetary policy or the broader economy, partially due to the small percentage of merchants who accept crypto payments for goods and services.
USDC was launched late last year by crypto finance startup Circle and Coinbase. Just earlier this month, Coinbase expanded crypto-to-crypto trading in the stablecoin to 85 countries. “For new customers in countries like Argentina and Uzbekistan, where consumer prices are expected to inflate by 10–20% in 2020, stablecoins like USDC could provide an opportunity to protect against inflation,” it said at the time.
