Good news for Cardano: the Flexa payment network is adding support for the ADA token.
Instant Payment Support
Cardano’s cryptocurrency, called ADA, was recently added as a payment option by the payment network Flexa. Interestingly enough, this update came just after Bitpay disappointed the Cardano community by choosing Shiba Inu over ADA.
According to Flexa’s announcement, the company will now provide direct payment support for ADA at more than 40,000 locations in the United States. Nordstrom, Barnes & Noble, Lowe’s, Gamestop and Whole Foods are among the merchants that accept Flex payments.
The move was part of the Gemini-supported “25 Days of Flexa” campaign. In this, it has added payment support for a number of leading digital assets, including Avalanche, Filecoin, Solana and a number of DeFi tokens.
Buckle up, because it’s DeFi Thursday on #25DaysofFlexa! Introducing support for…@1inch #1INCH,@AaveAave $AAVE,@AlchemixFi $ALCX,@BalancerLabs $BAL,@Bancor $BNT,@Barn_Bridge $BOND,@CurveFinance $CRV,@harvest_finance $FARM,@kybernetwork $KNC,@MakerDAO $MKR,
… 1/2 pic.twitter.com/cOEdI1DKJ7
— Flexa (@FlexaHQ) Dec 9, 2021
Flexa has been rigorously increasing its presence in the crypto industry lately. It has also created a mobile app called SPEDN to facilitate cryptocurrency payments, which will now include ADA. Through Flexa’s partnership with the prominent cryptocurrency exchange Gemini, the SPEDN wallet is fully preserved and insured on Gemini’s infrastructure.
It even enabled Lightning Network payments to work with Flexa’s El Salvadoran financial institution. This was done together with selected partners and merchants to accept Bitcoin for loans, credit card repayments, goods and services. The largest cryptocurrency became legal tender in the country in September.
Flexa’s support for Cardano is good news for the community. The company had previously shared a Twitter survey asking users which token they would like to see. It featured options such as Polygon, Avalanche, and Cardano.
ADA vs SHIB
However, Bitpay decided to pick SHIB before the poll ended. This did not sit well with the Cardano community. Founder Charles Hoskison even expressed his frustration on Twitter:
What was the point of the poll? https://t.co/MBjBMkjE3 pic.twitter.com/R1bUg8OUQg
— Charles Hoskinson (@IOHK_Charles) Dec 10, 2021
While there is excitement around Flexa’s announcement, some argue that digital assets with tools like ADA will not be used by anyone for payment purposes. Flexa may want to change this perception by offering simpler payment solutions.