Tag: merchants

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Online gaming operators attract players using BitPay for instant Bitcoin deposits

Today’s online players expect fast, secure, and affordable deposit options. Fast and secure are more than just a ‘nice to have’, but a requirement when players choose where and what to play.

Nearly 100% of players say that they want a fast, secure, and affordable method of funding.

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Yet, as online gaming operators work to make deposit options easier and more convenient for their players, they are limited by the inherent challenges of the available payment methods. Traditional credit card and bank-based processing can be time consuming, frustrating and sometimes expensive. In fact, amount limits or delayed deposits can be a significant reason why players leave or choose one website over another.

More payment options equal more sales.

Without question, card funding is a large and popular choice for online players. In fact, card payments consistently rank as the largest method of funding for online gaming operators and gaming platforms. No online business can survive without offering this method of funding. That said, just because card deposits are the most popular way to pay for goods and services online, that doesn’t mean you can sit back and relax just because you’re already accepting them.

If you’re serious about maximizing your sales, you’ve got to think about offering other online funding methods. It’s all about giving your customers choices–and about capturing every sale you can.

It is time to consider accepting bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as a method of funding.

Experts suggest that websites providing four or more payment methods other than credit cards have a sales conversion rate that’s 12 percent higher than those offering just one payment option in addition to credit cards.

  • Bank Accounts: Players are required to enter sensitive data, await account verification, and wait (again!) for collected funds to become available.
  • Card Payments: Players need to share sensitive card and personal data which is authorized, stored, and then processed. Access to customer funds is fast … but card limits often prevent big dollar transactions.

Introducing BitPay Deposit, BitPay’s Blockchain Payment Solution

We’re proud to introduce BitPay Deposit, a fast, safe, and secure account funding alternative for online players and online gaming operators.

BitPay Deposit allows online gaming operators to accept Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies deposits, fund user accounts in minutes, and receive next day irreversible bank account settlement in EUR, USD, or other local currency. Because blockchain payments are push payments versus pull payments, BitPay Deposit eliminates the risk of chargebacks and shields against any risk of Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies price volatility. BitPay Payout allows players to immediately withdraw funds instantly and BitPay handles sending Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies to any number of recipients worldwide, for a flat 1% fee.

BitPay provides online gaming operators:

  • Potential to expand user base. Tap into a large and growing number of BitPay and cryptocurrency users who may be delighted to learn that you are now accepting Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies.
  • Lower costs. BitPay charges a flat 1% transaction fee paid either by online gaming operators or passed on to their users.
  • Elimination of chargebacks. Bitcoin transactions are pushed by the sender rather than pulled by the receiver (like a merchant pulls money out of your bank account to settle a purchase), eliminating the risk of the payer claiming a payment was unauthorized.
  • Global operations. Accounts can be funded with cryptocurrency from anywhere in the world, without banks or any other third party.

and their clients / players:

  • Speed: Bitcoin transactions are confirmed by the network and settled, on average in ten minutes, allowing players to get started within minutes of funding an account.
  • Lower costs: No wire transfer fees, credit card fees, or interest.
  • Large deposit options: BitPay-funded accounts aren’t subject to limits.
  • Borderless: Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies can be sent anywhere in the world in minutes.

Expand your deposit options to include BitPay Deposit and open your platform to a large and unique cryptocurrencies audience.

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BitPay Binance Partnership Brings BUSD to BitPay’s Global Merchants

We’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback on our recent additions of ETH, XRP and three stablecoins to the BitPay merchants payment platform and app. Users say they like having more options to spend the currency of their choice, and merchants report an uptick in first-time customers paying with cryptocurrency through BitPay as a result.

Our newest addition, Binance’s USD-denominated BUSD stablecoin, we think will be a favorite of both merchants and users.

If you’re not familiar with Binance, they operate the top digital asset exchange in the world in both volume and number of users. With a daily average trading volume of around $2 billion and more than 15 million users worldwide, their fully registered, NYDFS-approved stablecoin BUSD has seen widespread adoption since its launch last year. Our addition of BUSD is part of a partnership with Binance that we think will expand BitPay merchant’s potential customer base considerably.

Our CEO, Stephen Pair said:

“The partnership with Binance is about more than supporting another stablecoin, it is about making cross border payments simple and easy for both businesses by leveraging the global influence of Binance Exchange. With BUSD, BitPay expands blockchain payment choices for all our customers across the global payments space who want the flexibility of paying on the blockchain with the stability of the US dollar.”

In addition to enabling BUSD acceptance for our global merchant base, spending for our more than 2 million BitPay Wallet and Card users, BitPay will also be processing donations for Binance’s Blockchain Charity Foundation.

Binance CEO, Changpeng Zhao, who goes by “CZ” said:

“We are honored to partner with BitPay, one of the earliest and most reputable crypto payment service providers in our industry. Stablecoin is the forerunner of blockchain-powered payments by its nature. Partnering with BitPay will enable merchants and businesses from around the world to accept BUSD, the USD-denominated stablecoin approved by the New York State Department of Financial Services. We believe a growing number of merchants and businesses will start adopting crypto, and we are glad to provide the payments solution together with BitPay, making the process simpler and easier.”

Like BitPay, Binance is a company whose primary goal is to bring real-world adoption to cryptocurrency, so our partnership makes a lot of sense. Bringing BUSD to BitPay users and merchants is just the beginning though, so stay tuned…

Here’s a quick snapshot of what happens when the BitPay Wallet will support BUSD beginning April 27, 2020:

  • Merchants and users don’t have to do anything to begin accepting BUSD payments as support is automatic beginning April 29th, 2020.
  • Accepting or paying with BUSD opens up new possibilities for global businesses that require the stability of the dollar but the security and efficiency of blockchain payments with BitPay.
  • BitPay will process donations for the Binance Charity Foundation.

Want to accept cryptocurrencies for payments?

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To fight fraud, Amazon now screens third-party sellers through video calls

Amazon is piloting a new system aimed at validating the identify of third-party sellers over video conferencing, the company announced on Sunday. The technology is a part of a series of seller-verification processes that Amazon uses to combat fraud on its platform, which the company claims stopped 2.5 million suspected bad actors from publishing their products to Amazon in 2019.

Earlier this year, Amazon began testing a process where seller verifications were handled in person. But due to the coronavirus outbreak and social distancing requirements, the company says it pivoted to live video conferencing in February.

The pilot program is now running in a number of markets, including the U.S., U.K., China and Japan. To date, more than 1,000 sellers have attempted to register an account through the pilot experience, Amazon says.

To vet the sellers, Amazon’s team sets up a video call, then checks that the individual’s ID matches the person and the documents they shared with their application. The Amazon associates also lean on third-party data sources for additional verification. In addition, the call may be used to provide the seller with information about problems with their registration and how to resolve them.

“Amazon is always innovating to improve the seller experience so honest entrepreneurs can seamlessly open a selling account and start a business, while also proactively blocking bad actors,” an Amazon spokesperson said about the new initiative. “As we practice social distancing, we are testing a process that allows us to validate prospective sellers’ identification via video conferencing. This pilot allows us to connect one-on-one with prospective sellers while making it even more difficult for fraudsters to hide,” they said.

In addition to video conferencing, Amazon also uses a proprietary machine learning system to vet sellers before they’re allowed online, it says. This system analyzes hundreds of different data point to identify potential risk, including verifying whether the account is related to another account that was previously removed from the marketplace, for example. The sellers’ applications are also reviewed by trained investigators before being approved.

Seller verification is only one way Amazon has taken on fraud, however.

The issue continues to be a serious problem across online marketplaces, where sellers hawk counterfeit items and scam consumers. Some retailers, including Nike and Birkenstock, have found the hassles aren’t worth the risk of dealing with Amazon, as a result.

While the retailer has long been accused of avoiding issues around fraud, it’s more recently pledged to spend billions to address the problem and has inserted itself into legal battles with fraudulent sellers and counterfeiters in recent years.

For example, it filed three lawsuits in 2018 in partnership with fashion designer Vera Bradley and mobile accessories maker Otterbox over counterfeits. It has also sued sellers buying fake reviews and others involved in the fake review industry. 

Last year, Amazon announced an initiative called Project Zero, which introduced a range of tools for brands to use to help Amazon fight fraud. The brands can opt to provide Amazon with their logos, trademarks and other key data, allowing the retailer to scan its billions of product listings to find suspected counterfeits more proactively.

Another tool, serialization, allows brands to include a unique code on their products during manufacturing, which can later be scanned to verify that a purchase is authentic. This tool, now known as Transparency, expanded to other markets last summer, including Europe, Canada and India.

But unlike these earlier efforts, seller verification aims to cut down on products being listed in the first place –not just removed once listings go live or stopping fraudulent products from being shipped to customers.

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