Kraken Ramps Up Mobile Payments Presence With Two New Cryptocurrencies

October 3, 2024         By: Steven Anderson

Thanks to cryptocurrency, the mobile payments world has a whole new playing field. One day, possibly, we will make purchases for everything from groceries to gasoline with Dogecoin, bitcoin, and potentially dozens of others. We’re already seeing some firms working to make that happen, and now, the Kraken exchange is ramping up its presence with two new currencies: Quantum and Cardano.

Kraken filled us in on the change just recently, and will permit trading of each in several different trading pairs. US dollars, euros, Canadian dollars, bitcoin outright, and Ethereum as well will be accepted as payment for both Cardano and Quantum.

Cardano, for those not familiar, boasts a decentralized operation that includes a scalable settlement capability, as well as a computing layer that can support smart contracts. Smart contracts are growing in popularity in several fields, so Cardano may have a bit of an edge in the market. It also notes that it has the first-ever provably secure “proof-of-stake consensus mechanism,” which further should attract interest in the larger field.

Quantum, meanwhile, is out to draw from the best of both bitcoin and Ethereum, capitalizing on their earlier successes and refining shortcomings. It’s built what it calls an “Account Abstraction Layer” which allows a virtual machine function similar to that of Ethereum to operate, alongside the combined force of bitcoin’s proof-of-stake consensus and unspent transaction model. Plus, should either of the two add new features, these can be incorporated fairly handily into Quantum’s operations.

Given reports that Kraken may be among several cryptocurrency exchanges facing shutdown—as reported recently in The ICO Journal—thanks to new regulation from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), this may not be the time to invest. In fact, it’s actually starting to get a bit dangerous to trade cryptocurrencies; the FBI recently seized 1Broker.com and shut down the entire exchange amid several charges from the various federal organizations. However, some point out that The ICO Journal’s own reputation here is suspect, so consider that as well when making any decisions.

Still, adding new coins to an exchange isn’t exactly a bad idea. With so many cryptocurrencies out there, allowing users to access as many as possible ensures that every taste is catered to, and everyone stays in one particular camp.