Bitcoin wallet app Android

Coinbase releases new wallet and merchant apps

Jan. 3, 2014

Bitcoin wallet provider Coinbase has released a point-of-sale app enabling merchants to accept Bitcoin payments in-person on a mobile device, along with an updated Android 2.0 consumer app.

The San Francisco-based company has so far raised $31 million in investment, including $25 million in December. It provides a consumer digital wallet for sending and receiving Bitcoins and a merchant service for accepting Bitcoin payments. The wallet is linked to U.S. bank accounts, allowing users to buy and sell Bitcoins and have U.S. dollar equivalents deposited into their bank accounts daily.

The digital wallet is available for Android-based devices and SMS. In November, Apple removed Coinbase’s iOS app from the Apple app store.

The new stand-alone point-of-sale merchant app can be used online or offline, according to a Coinbase blog. To receive in-person payments, the merchant enters the amount of the sale on a mobile device to generate a QR code. This code is scanned by the customer’s Coinbase app and a payment is then made.

Merchants can check their Coinbase account online and generate accounting reports for book-keeping. In addition, they can cash out their Bitcoins daily to a bank account, Coinbase said.