Bitcoin transactions were on the rise in 2018. A recent report released by BitPay blockchain payment processor showed that the company processed transactions of $1 billion in 2018. The press release also states that BitPay managed to set a record for payment error rates. From 8% in December 2017, the errors for total dollar volume dropped to under 1% in 2018.
A Bullish Outlook for Bitcoin
The Head of Product at BitPay, Sean Rolland, stated in the press release: Bitcoin has the network effect around the world and we are still extremely bullish on Bitcoin and the Bitcoin ecosystem.
He believes that the support for Payment Protocol wallets has convinced many merchants around the globe to start accepting payments in Bitcoin. The Bitcore Wallet Service developed by BitPay is the driving force behind more that 1.5 million wallets created by users during last year.
Growing Trust Among Businesses
The news shared by BitPay has a stronger significance, beyond the immediate positive effect on its image and investors. The record transactions with Bitcoin in 2018 show that cryptocurrency is making its way into the B2C and B2B worlds. It is no longer a currency reserved only for peer to peer transfers between individuals.
Large brands and small businesses across the world are willing to allow their customers to pay with crypto. BitPay offers payment processing services in 233 countries and territories across the globe, including UK, Europe, Canada and Australia.
Professionals Steer Towards Blockchain and Crypto Companies
At the same time, recent additions to the staff of the company indicate that professionals are willing to start a career in crypto. The new Head of Industry Solutions responsible for B2B businesses is Rolf Haag, a former executive at Western Union and PayPal. This move came in response to the 255% growth in the B2B line of business that BitPay experienced. Some of the clients include law firms, IT vendors and data centre providers.
BitPay’s B2B business continues to grow rapidly as our solution is cheaper and quicker than a bank wire from most regions of the world,
said the co-founder and CEO of BitPay, Stephen Pair.
New Investors Bring $40 Million in Series B Funding to BitPay
The positive results of 2018 enabled BitPay to complete a Series B funding. The funding raised $40 million and now the company has a total capital of over $70 million. The series B included individual investors, such as Christopher Klauss Family office, the founder of Internet Security Systems, and the Co-founder of Tencent, Alvin Liu.
Bitcoin has the network effect around the world and we are still extremely bullish on Bitcoin and the Bitcoin ecosystem.
The Series B funding came as a necessity after the constant growth of the company. BitPay increased its headcount by 78% during last year. At the moment, the BitPay team consists of 80 employees working in the sales, engineering, support, and compliance departments. Among the new clients they work with are major gift card brands. Users can use in-app facilities to buy gift cards for shopping, food and travel paying with Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash.