Why should my business use a cryptocurrency payment gateway?

According to a survey conducted in December 2021 by the fintech comparison website Finder.com, about 15.8 percent of Singaporeans own cryptocurrency. As Singapore becomes a major crypto player in the region, this percentage will grow, and cryptocurrency-related services such as cryptocurrency payment gateways will become commonplace.

With cryptocurrency on an upward trend that will not cease anytime soon, you may be interested in accepting it as a form of payment on your website. As volatile as it may be, cryptocurrency is still a currency, and there will be customers out there who would like to use them to make purchases.

At Verz Design, we keep ourselves abreast of such trends that will help us value-add to our clients. That is why when you develop your website with us, you have the option to integrate cryptocurrency payment gateways into your website.

In this article, we will be sharing some of the cryptocurrency payment gateways available in the market that will complement your website and provide greater convenience to your customers. All of them are available on Magento, Shopify and Woocommerce, the three most prominent eCommerce solutions Verz Design leverages.

Our Cryptocurrency Payment Gateway Picks at a Glance

1. TripleA

TripleA has made headlines by being the first cryptocurrency payment company to be licenced by the MAS. The service provider prides itself on empowering businesses to accept cryptocurrency from everywhere seamlessly by being compatible with all crypto wallets.

Singaporean brands Charles & Keith, a boutique, and Novelship, a sneaker marketplace, are among the first few businesses to adopt TripleA to receive cryptocurrency on their eCommerce website, and we expect more companies here to follow suit.

How it Works

Credit: Charles & Keith

When customers check out with the cryptocurrency payment option on your website, it will present them with a QR code that they can scan with their crypto wallet. Upon sale, funds are converted into fiat currency and placed in your TripleA account.

For fees, TripleA does not take a percentage of transactions. Instead, a 0.8% fee is charged when you withdraw transactions and withdrawals in local currency. This fee is waived if you operate a non-profit business.

Credit: TripleA

Of all the payment providers in this list, TripleA may provide the best convenience for your customers by working with all wallets, and its cost may be one of the lowest. To top it all off, you are also guarded against volatility with locked-in conversion rates. However, there is a minimum threshold of US$1000 for withdrawals, which may cause inconvenience for smaller businesses.

TripleA supports the transaction of eight coins at the time of writing, namely:

Bitcoin (BTC)
Ethereum (ETH)
Bitcoin Cash (BCH)
Litecoin (LTC)
Ripple (XRP)
Polkadot (DOT)
EOS
Cardano (ADA)

2. BitPay

BitPay is a pioneer of cryptocurrency payment gateways. It has been around for over a decade and its services are available in 229 countries. If that wasn’t impressive enough, Bitpay supports over 90 different wallets and boasts an outstanding client base, such as the Red Cross, Microsoft and even Shopify!

How it Works

Bitpay allows you to transact in cryptocurrency without touching the coins. This is because when customers pay via BitPay’s QR Code on your website, the exchange rate of the coins is locked in at the time of transaction.

Credit: Bitpay

At the end of each business day, these coins are automatically converted into local fiat currency and deposited directly into your bank account. BitPay charges a flat 1% transaction fee as far as prices go.

All in all, BitPay is a reliable option for merchants looking to offer their customers the convenience to spend their cryptocurrency without exposing themselves to market volatility.

At the time of writing, BitPay supports the transaction of 13 coins, namely:

Bitcoin (BTC)
Ethereum (ETH)
Bitcoin Cash (BCH)
Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC)
Dogecoin (DOGE)
Litecoin (LTC)
Shiba Inu Coin (SHIB)
Ripple (XRP)
USD Coin (USDC)
DAI
Gemini USD (GUSD)
Binance USD (BUSD)
USDP

3. Coinbase Commerce

If Coinbase sounds familiar to you, you may already be aware that it is one of the largest centralised cryptocurrency exchanges in the world. But did you know that Coinbase also offers a payment gateway for business in the form of Coinbase Commerce?

How it Works

Credit: Coinbase Commerce

Unlike other options on this list, when customers checkout on your site, they will be presented with the option to pay via their Coinbase wallet. They may also choose to use another wallet.

Coinbase Commerce offers two plans, namely Self-Managed and Coinbase Managed, both charging a flat 1% fee per transaction. The main difference between these two plans is that Coinbase takes a hands-free approach to the Self-Managed plan. This means that you will have to manually convert your received cryptocurrency into fiat currency or another cryptocurrency for withdrawal using a Coinbase Exchange account.

Conversely, for the Coinbase Managed plan, Coinbase provides free automatic settlement of your cryptocurrency. Take note that you will still need a Coinbase Exchange account to do this, as Coinbase Commerce cannot be linked directly to a bank account. Doing so will also incur a 1% fee plus a network fee to convert your crypto into cash.

Coinbase Commerce provides convenience for customers who use the Coinbase Wallet, as it allows them to make payments using the same app they are already familiar with.

At the time of writing, Coinbase Commerce supports the transaction of seven coins, namely:

Bitcoin (BTC)
Ethereum (ETH)
Bitcoin Cash (BCH)
Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC)
Dogecoin (DOGE)
USD Coin (USDC)
DAI

4. Coingate

Most cryptocurrency payment gateways exclusively process Bitcoin, Ethereum and a select few stablecoins such as USDC and USDT. On the other hand, Coingate supports an extensive list of 78 different coins (at the time of writing) and is expected to add more to its offering. Web developers can also integrate Coingate payment solutions easily into almost all eCommerce websites.

How it Works

Credit: Coingate

When customers checkout on your website, Coingate will provide them with an option to check out with cryptocurrency via Coingate. Upon selecting their preferred coin to complete the transaction, they will have to scan a QR code with their wallet to complete the payment. The customer’s payment will then be automatically converted into the cryptocurrency of your choice. If you would like to receive payments in fiat, you can request payouts in USD or Euro to your bank account manually, or Coingate will automatically do this weekly.

Credit: Coingate

For fees, Coingate charges a 1% processing fee for all transactions. Coingate only supports USD and Euro for fiat withdrawals and charges a 0.2% and 1% fee, respectively. This amount will be no less than 50 euros. There are no fees for cryptocurrency withdrawals. Therefore, we would recommend using Coingate if you would like to take advantage of their many supported currencies and receive your payments in crypto. As Coingate’s list of supported coins is too long to fit into this post, you can check out the complete list at their website here.

Which Cryptocurrency Payment Gateway Platform Should I Use?

As cryptocurrency continues its upward trend, more cryptocurrency payment gateways will emerge in the future. The list we have presented is non-exhaustive, and we are aware that there are many more alternatives in the market.

Every cryptocurrency payment gateway brings its own unique set of strengths and weaknesses. Aside from the cost, some important considerations to keep in mind are also your usage and your customer base.

With that being said, for businesses in Singapore, we would recommend Triple A’s cryptocurrency payment gateway. Having received a MAS licence, TripleA has shown exceptional trustworthiness as a digital payment token service provider, on par with other Singaporean financial institutions and banks. This is a remarkable feat as the cryptocurrency space is notorious for its unpredictability. On top of that, TripleA does not charge merchants for transactions, and withdrawal fees are completely waived for non-profit organisations. As such, it even more ideal for businesses of this nature.

How Verz Design Can Help

If you would like to explore the integration of cryptocurrency payment processors on your website, feel free to contact us below for a free consultation. Our experienced consultants will then get in touch with you to understand your business before recommending the best solution for you.

In any case, we have compiled the information on these gateways in the table below for your convenience. Alternatively, if you would like to learn more about other payment processors, check out our Payment Gateway Guide.