Photo: Forbes
Jack Mallers, CEO at Strike, announced a wide range of dynamic collaborations for the Lightning Network of Bitcoin at the Miami Bitcoin 2022 convention on Thursday—such as a partnership with e-commerce behemoth Shopify.
Consumers are gonna be able to walk into a multitude of American storefronts that push into the payments firms and pay throughout the Lightning Network.
According to Mallers, Strike worked closely with the world’s biggest point-of-sale supplier NCR and payments company Blackhawk.
At the Miami Beach Conference Center stage, the executive stated in front of a packed crowd that his “King’s Gambit” would take Bitcoin to its payments core.
“If we can help make the Bitcoin network more accessible and usable, we believe we can change the world,” he stated. Supporting Bitcoin as a less expensive payment means is crucial to that, he added, complementing it with the “caviar-eating” records of traditional bank-issued credit cards that he described as non-innovative for years.
“There’s not been since 1949 a superior payments network that allows us to innovate” for customers, he stated. “Let’s build the superior payments network from scratch.”
What Mallers want to convey is that Bitcoin’s Lightning Network “carries all the properties” for local prosperity.
He continued that Strike would team up with Shopify’s worldwide network of merchants to enable payments throughout the Bitcoin Lightning Network—especially for those merchants who consider settling in.
“Strike’s integration enables Shopify merchants to diversify their existing payment options and reach untapped global markets and purchasing power. Strike’s integration also allows Shopify merchants to generate savings through low-cost payment processing. By instantly converting bitcoin payments to dollars, Strike removes certain complexities merchants face in holding bitcoin,” according to a press release.
Mallers’ news could amplify an eruption in mainstream backing for Lightning Network. Stock and Crypto buy-and-sell center Robinhood Markets said Tuesday that its latest wallet would give support for bitcoin transactions on the Lightning Network.
“This is about America, and we need to protect our ability to innovate,” stated Mallers.
“I’ve also been working with policymakers to ensure that we have the right to build freely in this country,” he said, further stating that he has been running errands with Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis, who is a bitcoin lover, on such legislation.
