Coinbase on Monday announced integration with Apple Pay, allowing app makers to include the ability to purchase cryptocurrencies directly in their apps with Apple Pay.
This integration is part of Coinbase Onramp and provides app makers with a way for their customers to convert traditional currencies such as the US dollar into cryptocurrencies. This process has traditionally been difficult, requiring users to pay additional fees and access multiple websites and apps.
With Apple Pay integration, Coinbase continues to push its products towards the average consumer by making cryptocurrency purchases more accessible.
With this integration, Apple appears to be at least more accepting of cryptocurrencies than before, and will likely change the iPhone maker's fractious relationship with the cryptocurrency industry.
A possible change of heart comes at an interesting political moment. President-elect Trump has signaled that his next administration will be more crypto-industry-friendly than previous leaders, a move that has undoubtedly helped push Bitcoin's price to nearly $100,000. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Gary Gensler recently announced that he will step down when President Trump takes office, ending the years-long crackdown on cryptocurrencies.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has previously criticized Apple for not playing nice with the cryptocurrency industry and claimed that it could create antitrust problems for the iPhone maker in 2022. At the time, Armstrong said Apple had banned certain features from the Coinbase app.
When Apple released its credit card in 2019, the company said it would not allow customers to use the card to purchase cryptocurrencies. Apple has a history of kicking cryptocurrency, blockchain, and NFT apps from the App Store. Earlier this year, the Cupertino-based company pulled Binance, Kraken, and some of the world's largest crypto exchanges from its App Store in India.
Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a 2021 interview that he is considering making it possible to purchase cryptocurrencies with Apple Pay, and that he owns cryptocurrencies himself. even mentioned. However, Cook said at the time that he wanted to distance his company from the crypto industry.