PayPal to support Ethereum and Bitcoin

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Legitimacy of the PayPal Domain & Phishing Risk

  • Many were initially convinced paypal-corp.com was a phishing domain due to the odd hostname and barebones page.
  • Others confirmed it is linked from paypal.com and part of PayPal’s broader corporate/IR domain mess (pypl.com, paypal-inc.com, etc.).
  • Several argue this fragmented domain strategy and prior PayPal-branded phishing-style emails desensitize users and make real phishing easier.
  • A side thread defends separate domains as a security practice (cookie isolation, CMS compromise blast radius).

Centralization vs Crypto’s Original Promise

  • Recurrent theme: crypto was supposed to remove middlemen like PayPal, so a PayPal crypto layer feels contradictory.
  • One camp: most people prioritize convenience, which tends to re‑centralize systems; corporate custodians are inevitable.
  • Others argue decentralization still matters as an option: centralized services can exist as long as you can exit to self-custody.
  • Critics say this shows the “decentralize money” ideal largely failed; crypto is now mostly a speculative and fee-extraction layer.

Stablecoins, US Debt & Global Effects

  • Debate over whether stablecoins are effectively 0% financing for US debt or just another channel for normal Treasury demand.
  • Some see US‑blessed stablecoins (and the GENIUS Act) as a strategic win: more demand for Treasuries, stronger dollarization, more power over weaker currencies.
  • Others note the total stablecoin market is still small relative to US debt and question whether reserves are always real, citing Tether.
  • Use in inflationary/unstable countries is viewed both as a lifeline for individuals and a further erosion of local monetary sovereignty.

Trust in PayPal as Custodian

  • Very strong sentiment against holding balances (fiat or crypto) in PayPal: repeated stories of arbitrary freezes, months‑long lockouts, and poor/outsourced support.
  • Multiple commenters emphasize PayPal is not an FDIC‑insured bank in the US; in the EU it has a banking license but no deposit guarantee.
  • Recommended pattern: use PayPal only as a pass‑through (receive, then withdraw immediately; link a secondary bank; avoid debit cards and crypto custody).

Convenience, Protections & Actual Use Cases

  • Some defend PayPal as excellent for consumers and small merchants: easy integration, no card data handling, decent dispute resolution, and frictionless checkout.
  • Others counter that traditional credit cards and chargebacks already provide similar protection without PayPal’s account‑level power.
  • Several note PayPal already supported BTC/ETH trading; the “new” piece is deeper integration and stablecoin/peer‑to‑peer flows.

Scope, Marketing & Regulation

  • The slogan “anyone, anywhere” is widely mocked given the rollout is US‑only with KYC and documentation requirements; called typical US‑centric marketing.
  • Some note the move is less technical than regulatory: PayPal has had the plumbing, but waited for clearer US stablecoin rules and a more crypto‑friendly administration.

Practicality of Crypto Payments

  • Disagreement on whether BTC/ETH are practical to spend: some say fees and volatility make them poor currencies; others note ETH and especially L2s are now cheap for simple transfers.
  • Several argue stablecoins, not BTC, are where real payment volume and B2B cross‑border use is emerging; PayPal is trying to tap into that trend.