Coinbase releases tool for merchants to accept cryptocurrencies

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It may become a whole lot easier to use cryptocurrencies for payments.

Digital-assets exchange Coinbase Inc. is releasing a service for merchants to accept Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum and Litecoin payments, and deposit them into their own digital wallets, according to a blog post by the San Francisco-based company. The setup requires just an email address and a phone number.

The product, called Coinbase Commerce, can be directly integrated into a merchant’s checkout flow or added as a payment option on an e-commerce platform. Commerce platform Shopify, which was already accepting Bitcoin payments, is one of the first platforms to start using the service, Coinbase said.

Other merchants already taking cryptocurrencies are Overstock.com, Expedia Inc. and Microsoft Corp.

Bitcoins
A collection of bitcoin tokens sit in this arranged photograph in London, U.K., on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2017. The electronic coin that trades and is regulated like oil and gold surged 79 percent since the start of 2016 to $778, its highest level since early 2014. Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg
Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

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