[2018-12-11] Twitter CEO’s Square Overtake Coinbase as #1 Bitcoin Buying App?

[Lmaooo]

Square, a payment platform for merchants and individual users operated by Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, has surpassed Coinbase to become the most widely used iOS app to buy Bitcoin (BTC).

The platform, called Cash App on Apple’s iOS store, also overtook YouTube to become the number one top free mobile application on the iOS store, demonstrating a rising demand for digitalized payment systems in the U.S. market.

    The easiest way for every single person in America to buy bitcoin is #1 on iOS today 💪 @CashApp pic.twitter.com/nYUt6tSkIJ

    — Miles Suter (@WahWhoWah) December 8, 2018

But how was Square able to overtake Coinbase and provide users the easiest way to purchase the dominant cryptocurrency?

CCN | https://www.ccn.com/how-did-twitter-ceos-square-overtake-coinbase-as-1-bitcoin-buying-app/

[squatter]

The platform, called Cash App on Apple’s iOS store, also overtook YouTube to become the number one top free mobile application on the iOS store, demonstrating a rising demand for digitalized payment systems in the U.S. market.

The easiest way for every single person in America to buy bitcoin is #1 on iOS today @CashApp pic.twitter.com/nYUt6tSkIJ

— Miles Suter (@WahWhoWah) December 8, 2018

I wouldn't get too excited. I know several people who use Square Cash and none of them care about Bitcoin. More than anything, it's a Venmo competitor so it's largely targeting a very different market than bitcoiners. For instance:

As a benchmark, Nomura Instinet compared Square Cash monthly downloads with those of popular cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, which according to Dolev have turned sharply negative in recent months. In June, for example, Coinbase’s monthly download growth fell 39 percent, according to Nomura's research.

In June, Square, which is run by Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, got the green light from regulators to allow New Yorkers to trade cryptocurrency on the Cash app. But that didn't have a material effect on downloads.

"When they opened up trading in New York, you would expect a bump in downloads, but it didn't happen — if you look at the weekly trend it actually slowed slightly," Dolev said.

But I'm sure the awareness factor from having BTC trading in the app can't hurt.

[LeGaulois]

If you are able to make it easier to purchase and to verify your account then it's not hard to perform better than coinbase (even if it is mentioned that this only concerns Apple store). Performing better than Youtube is....well suspicious lol. Also as said the article the income coming from the Bitcoin activity isn't a major monetization engine, so easier and cheaper here is its receipe...

[gentlemand]

It's a money app with a smidge of Bitcoin buried in it, not a Bitcoin app.

Coinbase's position was much more meaningful but it's still better than a boot in the nads.

[BitHodler]

If you are able to make it easier to purchase and to verify your account then it's not hard to perform better than coinbase (even if it is mentioned that this only concerns Apple store).

Coinbase is quite expensive to buy Bitcoin or any other crypto currency from, which is why most of the users switched to Coinbase Pro. I'm sure this is an aspect where you can gain adoption with against Coinbase.

Competition in the space leads to better and cheaper services, but it seems that Coinbase doesn't care because of it's economical position. That attitude will cost them users in the long run.

We'll see where it goes, but I love seeing Coinbase getting its ass whooped due to their arrogance. People will always have an incentive to use services providing the same quality service, but at a much lower cost.

[buwaytress]

I still have some trouble getting used to these sort of comments. Credit due to Coinbase, Square et all for their roles in getting Bitcoin adopted in USA, where I guess still a significant portion of the community is concentrated, but for those in the nether reaches of the world for whom these avenues are closed, always makes me curious even if it makes sense the biggest economy in the world moves the machinery.

The public faces of Bitcoin still very much corporate aren't they?