Bolt To Add Crypto Option With Wyre Tie-Up
- Kimberly Chin, author of Axios Pro: Retail Deals
Photo: Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Getty Images
One-click checkout provider Bolt’s proposed $1.5 billion acquisition of crypto startup Wyre will make the ability to pay in cryptocurrency available to millions of shoppers, retailers and developers.
Why it's the BFD: Another tie-up between an e-commerce payments platform and blockchain tech will help accelerate the adoption of crypto payments among consumers and retailers.
- Shopify has also enabled bitcoin payments as far back as late 2013, subsequently partnering with Coinbase in mid-2014.
What’s happening: The Bolt-Wyre marriage would allow retailers to accept crypto as a payment method, “with the security and ease of traditional currency.”
Flashback: In January, Bolt raised $355 million as part of a Series E round led by funds and accounts managed by BlackRock, giving the online payments company an $11 billion valuation, a person familiar with the matter confirmed.
Yes, but: One-stop checkout startup Fast shuttered this week, with investors like Stripe, Addition and Index Ventures losing about $120 million.
- Fast paid too little attention to burn rate because it just assumed the VC gravy train would keep rolling, Axios' Dan Primack writes.
What we’re watching: The $1.5 billion is a steep price tag and we’ll be looking out for more details on how they plan on financing the deal.
- The companies expect the deal to close at the end of the year.