Bitcoin jumps past $59K as PayPal launches crypto payments at 29M merchants

Bitcoin (BTC) neared $60,000 on March 30 after PayPal confirmed that it had formally launched  cryptocurrency payments.

BTC/USD 1-minute candle chart (Bitstamp). Source: Tradingview

PayPal: Crypto is now "legitimate funding source"

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and Tradingview showed BTC/USD hitting a ten-day high on Tuesday as details appeared in the mainstream press.

According an exclusive report from Reuters, PayPal is set to release a formal announcement later on the day in which it will unveil its long-awaited cryptocurrency payment feature for U.S. customers.

The company caused a stir last year when it confirmed its venture into crypto, with the rollout ultimately set to extend to all users and 29 million merchants.

“This is the first time you can seamlessly use cryptocurrencies in the same way as a credit card or a debit card inside your PayPal wallet,” President and CEO Dan Schulman told Reuters.

While PayPal will not focus solely on Bitcoin, BTC price action reacted favorably to the reports, passing February's prior all-time high of $58,300 to manage $59,200 at the time of writing.

A look at orderbook data from Binance showed sellers still lined up between current spot price and historic highs of $61,700.

Continuing, PayPal referenced a watershed moment for cryptocurrencies in general, with Schulman describing them as a "legitimate funding source."

“We think it is a transitional point where cryptocurrencies move from being predominantly an asset class that you buy, hold and or sell to now becoming a legitimate funding source to make transactions in the real world at millions of merchants,” he added.

Woo: Bitcoin heading to "millions of dollars"

Long a skeptic, PayPal's official line now chimes with some of Bitcoin's most forward proponents. Among the most bullish long-term forecasts this week was that from statistician Willy Woo, who in an interview said that a single Bitcoin would ultimately become worth "millions of dollars."

"There's no way that Bitcoin's going to stop at the market cap of gold, which is $10 trillion; it's going to go a lot higher, which means that we're going to be going into the millions of dollars per coin," he told Real Vision's Laura Shin.

Also featuring was veteran trader Peter Brandt, who in a now widely-circulated comment said that he had completely changed his perspective on Bitcoin. 

"My mindset has changed... from bitcoin as a trade to bitcoin as a measure of wealth," he said.