PayPal is strengthening its commitment to cryptocurrency adoption with the announcement that US users will soon be able to buy, sell, and transfer Solana (SOL) and Chainlink (LINK) through both its main platform and Venmo. According to an April 4 press release, the expansion will be gradually rolled out in the coming weeks, strategically adding two assets known for their robust decentralized infrastructure and enterprise utility. This move increases PayPal’s supported digital assets to seven, responding to growing customer demand for a more diverse selection of tokens within the platform’s ecosystem.
The integration of Solana and Chainlink reflects PayPal’s long-term conviction that digital assets will become fundamental components of the digital commerce landscape, despite ongoing market volatility. While current CEO Alex Chriss has maintained a relatively low profile regarding the company’s crypto roadmap since taking over in late 2023, the expansion continues the vision established by his predecessor, Dan Schulman, who was a vocal proponent of blockchain integration. This latest development builds upon PayPal’s blockchain journey that began in October 2020 when it first allowed US customers to buy and hold itcoin">Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and itcoin">Bitcoin Cash, followed by the introduction of crypto checkout functionality in March 2021.
Perhaps most significantly, PayPal made history in 2023 by becoming the first major US financial platform to issue its own US dollar-backed stablecoin, PayPal USD (PYUSD), through a partnership with regulated issuer Paxos. According to DeFiLlama, PYUSD briefly surpassed $1 billion in market capitalization before stabilizing around $760 million in circulation. While modest compared to stablecoin giants like Tether and USD Coin, PayPal’s stablecoin initiative gained practical traction in October when the company completed a business-to-business transaction using PYUSD to settle an invoice with consulting firm Ernst & Young. By expanding its cryptocurrency offerings to include Solana and Chainlink, PayPal continues to position itself as a crucial bridge between traditional payment infrastructure and the evolving blockchain-based financial ecosystem.
