PayPal, the online payment giant, has announced its intention to launch a USD-backed stablecoin in partnership with Paxos Trust Co., a regulated crypto service provider. The stablecoin, dubbed PayPal USD (PYUSD), will be available on PayPal’s platform and other crypto exchanges that support Paxos Standard (PAX), another USD-pegged token issued by Paxos.
PayPal’s move into the stablecoin space is seen as a significant development for the digital finance ecosystem, as it could potentially increase the adoption and usage of crypto assets among its 400 million users. PayPal already allows its customers to buy, sell, and hold select cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin, ether, litecoin, and bitcoin cash, since October 2020.
However, the news of PayPal’s stablecoin plan did not have a noticeable impact on the prices of bitcoin and ether, the two largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization. Both coins remained flat over the past 24 hours, trading around $46,000 and $3,100 respectively, according to CoinDesk 20 data.
SHIBA INU finds support after 25% rally last week
While bitcoin and ether failed to react to the PayPal news, one altcoin that showed some resilience was SHIBA INU (SHIB), a meme-inspired token that claims to be a “Dogecoin killer”. SHIB managed to hold its ground after surging more than 25% last week, following the announcement of its integration with Coinbase Pro, a leading US-based crypto exchange.
SHIB is currently trading at $0.0000078, up 5.99% in the past 24 hours, according to CoinDesk 20 data. The coin has a market capitalization of over $3 billion, making it the 44th largest cryptocurrency in the world. SHIB’s popularity stems from its loyal community of fans, who call themselves “SHIB Army”, and its ambitious roadmap of developing an ecosystem of decentralized applications (DApps) on top of its native blockchain, ShibaSwap.
One of the upcoming DApps that SHIB’s developers are working on is Shiboshi, a collection of 10,000 non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that will be linked to real-world digital identities. The project aims to create a unique and engaging experience for SHIB holders, who will be able to name their Shiboshi, interact with them, and use them in future games and metaverses.
Other major tokens experience losses amid market uncertainty
While SHIB showed some stability amid the market uncertainty, other major tokens suffered losses in the past 24 hours. Some of the notable losers include:
- Dogecoin (DOGE), another meme-inspired coin that is backed by Tesla CEO Elon Musk, dropped 2.41% to $0.24.
- Avalanche (AVAX), a smart contract platform that competes with Ethereum, fell 3.34% to $13.49.
- Solana (SOL), a high-performance blockchain that claims to offer faster and cheaper transactions than Ethereum, declined 2.09% to $36.49.
- Polygon (MATIC), a scaling solution for Ethereum that enables lower fees and faster confirmations, slid 2.35% to $1.04.
The overall crypto market sentiment remains cautious, as investors await more clarity on the regulatory stance of various countries towards cryptocurrencies. Recently, some countries have taken a more hostile approach towards crypto activities, such as China banning bitcoin mining and India proposing a ban on private cryptocurrencies. On the other hand, some countries have embraced crypto innovation, such as El Salvador adopting bitcoin as legal tender and Paraguay considering a similar move.
