eBay denies reports that it will accept crypto payments
Representatives for eBay have denied that the company will be accepting cryptocurrencies as a payment method, as reported by CryptoNews. Rumours about eBay's crypto adoption started due to adverts spotted at the Consensus 2019 event.
Photos leaked from the Consensus floor yesterday showed a couple of advertising hoardings that had pulses racing in the crypto community. Ebay was claiming that virtual currencies were "happening" on eBay, leading many to conclude that the online marketplace would soon be adopting BTC and other cryptos as a payment method, or at least partnering with a crypto payments company. Some even credited this as a positive fundamental that was prolonging BTC's impressive price rally.
Now, after requests for information from various outlets, the company has come out to deny any rumours of involvement with cryptos or any plans to do so in the near future. A representative claimed that "Cryptocurrency is not accepted as a form of payment on the eBay platform, nor is it part of our payments strategy", and directed those interested to the official policy page on the eBay site. Here it is stated that cryptocurrencies are not accepted as payment.
The adverts spotted at Consensus were apparently "referencing the fact that eBay has a variety of virtual currency related items for sale on the marketplace, such as mining equipment".
Of course, a large event such as Consensus is a good occasion for any company to promote its services, but the sale of mining equipment on eBay from third-party providers is a pretty tenuous link to crypto. Did the company really expect people to figure this out, or were they exploiting people's enthusiasm for crypto with a misleading message? Should we just try to not jump to conclusions so easily? Let us know what you think.
