Bitcoin payments processor BitPay has revealed it is now processing an average of $1m worth of bitcoin payments per day.
Coinbase and BitPay are currently the biggest bitcoin processors on the market and BitPay says it is serving the needs of over 30,000 businesses and organisations.
The company’s client list features a number of big names, including: Zynga, Virgin Galactic, WordPress, Gyft, Shopify and TigerDirect.
Bitcoin adoption made easy
The basic idea behind bitcoin payments processors is simple – they allow merchants to accept bitcoin without having to handle bitcoins at all, as all transactions are converted to fiat. This approach also means merchants are not exposed to a number of risks associated with bitcoin, namely volatility and wallet security.
A large number of merchants clearly like the idea, as the company went from 10,000 merchants last year to more than 30,000 in just nine months.
BitPay processed an estimated $110m worth of bitcoin transactions last year and at this rate it stands to process three times as much this year. NewsBTC reports that the company hopes bring as many as 100,000 merchants in its fold by the end of the year.
Record funding round and expansion
Earlier this month the company successfully closed a $30m Series A funding round, setting a record for bitcoin company funding. The round was led by Index Ventures and several prominent investors decided to pitch in, including Sir Richard Branson, PayPal founder Peter Thiel and AME Cloud Ventures, helmed by Yahoo founder Jerry Yang.
Even before the record-breaking funding round was announced, the Atlanta-based company started an aggressive expansion, opening offices in Amsterdam, Buenos Aires and San Francisco.
A leadership reshuffle was also revealed recently. Stephen Pair has moved up to the position of CEO, while former CEO Tony Gallippi has now taken the role of Executive Chairman. BitPay said the decision would create openings for additional executive-level positions and ensure that developers are well represented in the leadership team.
Disclaimer: CoinDesk founder Shakil Khan is an investor in BitPay.
Payment Counter image via Shutterstock