iPayYou Brings Bitcoin Payments Closer To Amazon

Bitcoin has always been seeking ways to increase its legitimacy. One of the best ways to do so is to increase the amount of online merchants accepting the cryptocurrency. A lot of online stores have started to take Bitcoin as payment but one of the biggest holdouts is Amazon. The retail giant has been heavily resistant to the use of Bitcoin as payment for its products for a long time now. However, that seems to have changed thanks to Amazon Direct and Bitcoin wallet iPayYou.

Troubled history

Amazon and Bitcoin have had a troubled history. Back in 2014, when Bitcoin was starting to get big, Amazon decided it was not going to start accepting the cryptocurrency. This was actually pretty strange for the company since Amazon has always gone for the cutting-edge when it comes to retail developments. This could be seen in its release of the Kindle and its various innovations through the years. This forward-thinking behavior has kept Amazon ahead of the competition.

The problem with Bitcoin was the perceived instability. Though a lot has changed since the heady days of 2014, Bitcoin is still not as solid as mainstream fiat currencies. This could be seen in the various hacking scandals that plague the Bitcoin world, along with the cryptocurrency’s price volatility. Amazon did not want a random factor messing around in its payment system, which leads to another problem. Amazon likes control and Bitcoin is notoriously slippery. It was designed that way, after all. The retail giant also likes to know who its customers are and Bitcoin allows for a lot of anonymity.

A little help

However, it seems the relation between Amazon and Bitcoin is turning a corner. This is thanks to the efforts of Bitcoin wallet iPayYou. The Seattle-based wallet recently announced that iPayYou users would be able to pay for items on Amazon by using Amazon Direct.

A recent update adds an Amazon Direct tab to the iPayYou platform. Users can just click on it and set an amount of Bitcoin to transfer and the destination account. Bitcoin users can then finalize the payment with a single click.

Gene Kavner, former worldwide director at Amazon and current CEO of iPayYou, is excited about this development. He said:

“During my time as an executive at Amazon, we closely studied the friction points and obstacles faced by shoppers, including and especially with payments. Bitcoin is a solution to so many of those problems. That’s why today, in time for the holiday season, we’re launching the most direct way to spend bitcoin anywhere, starting with the world’s largest retailer.”

It was already possible to use Bitcoin to buy on Amazon indirectly. This was done by using bitcoins to purchase an Amazon digital gift card. People could then use the gift card to do some Amazon shopping. However, with iPayYou’s approach, it is a lot easier and simpler. With this development, Bitcoin users will have more purchasing options and Bitcoin takes one more step down the road of greater acceptance.