Chicago-based payment application Strike has integrated with global e-commerce giant Shopify, so merchants can accept Bitcoin payments via the Bitcoin Lightning Network.
The announcement was made by Strike CEO, Jack Mallers, who also unveiled a series of high-powered partnerships for Bitcoin’s Lightning Network at the Bitcoin 2022 conference in Miami on Thursday, including the integration with Shopify.
Shopify is the world’s 18th largest eCommerce company with about $4.6 billion in annual revenue, according to Macrotrends, a financial market research site. Its service enables merchants to set up an online store in 175 different countries.
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What they are saying
- According to Mallers, “You’re gonna be able to walk into millions of American storefronts that plug into the payments stalwarts and pay across the Lightning Network.
- “If we can help make the Bitcoin network more accessible and usable we believe we can change the world.”
- He further explained that leveraging Bitcoin as a cheap payments network is critical to that, contrasting it with the “caviar-eating” history of boomer bank-issued credit cards that he mentioned hasn’t innovated (beyond onboarding middlemen and their fees) in years.
- According to Mallers one of the main advantages to using Bitcoin via the Lightning Network is that payments settle nearly instantly as opposed to the “late, two to 15-day settlement” he cited as a drawback of existing common electronic payment methods. He added that instant settlements help both consumers and merchants complete accounting work and know their exact balances faster.
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Mallers also revealed that Strike which is known for its work in El Salvador in offering Bitcoin payment options in the Latin American nation, partnered with NCR, the world’s largest point-of-sale (POS) supplier, and payments firm Blackhawk.
The company draws $2.5 billion in annual revenue and its website states it has products at over 400,000 storefronts in 28 countries.