Fantom Foundation, one of the fastest growing layer-1 blockchain platforms, announced its integration with crypto e-commerce platform, Shopping.io, to allow online shoppers to make online purchases from major retailers using Fantom’s native FTM token. Starting today, FTM holders can use their tokens on Shopping.io to purchase items from a selection of popular retailers, including Amazon, Home Depot, eBay and Walmart.
The combination of economic inflation, non-fungible token growth, and metaverse intrigue drove cryptocurrency interest over the past year – culminating in the number of crypto holders worldwide topping 300 million. In conjunction with the rising crypto interest, the prospect of retail shopping with cryptocurrency has emerged as well. According to a recent study by Cantaloupe, 67% of crypto owners would consider using it for purchases. Such interest prompted Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky to position allowing crypto payments as his number one objective for 2022, building on their service to purchase Airbnb gift cards with cryptocurrencies.
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Now 46 million crypto holders plan on making purchases using their digital assets, with another 42 million non-owners considering buying cryptocurrency for making purchases in the future. Despite the interest, however, more than 50% of crypto owners say not enough merchants accept crypto, according to PYMNTS. Through the integration with Shopping.io, Fantom hopes to allow FTM holders to easily transact at popular online retailers.
“At our core, Fantom strives to bolster the entirety of decentralized finance, and the larger cryptocurrency economy,” said Fantom CEO, Michael Kong. “Tangible utility, like online retail, is a major step in that direction. We’re thrilled to integrate with Shopping.io to deliver simple, user-friendly purchase capabilities.”
In line with the integration, FTM holders will be able to purchase everyday items using digital assets. The move signifies a concerted move to facilitate mainstream crypto adoption. To this point, Shopping.io is the only international crypto onramp allowing users to spend cryptocurrencies on e-commerce websites.
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“Fantom is among the most reputable, exciting platforms in the space, so we could not be more excited to deliver this integration,” added Shopping.io Founder & CEO, Arbel Arif. “With their significant community support, we firmly believe this is a major leap toward crypto adoption and evolution.”
The integration with Shopping.io comes on the heels of Fantom’s recent integration with open-source oracle provider, DIA, to deliver data feeds to DeFi developers within the Fantom ecosystem. The integration looks to bolster the development of a variety of use cases including stablecoins, staking rewards, lending and borrowing, DEXs and more.