BitPay is always working hard to improve their service. For a Bitcoin-oriented company, the integration of SegWit has taken quite some time. Then again, the same can be said for virtually every other company in the world right now.The company has finally completed this big step, which is quite positive for Bitcoin. Invoices are now fully compatible with payments from SegWit-enabled wallets. Bitcoin really needs this scaling solution to succeed sooner rather than later.
It is always good to see more native SegWit support in the Bitcoin world. Despite activating on the network many months ago, few service providers are compatible. That has many different reasons, including the messy code and difficulties integrating it into existing systems. When even payment processors such as BitPay have to spend months on doing so, you know this is not an easy feat whatsoever.
SegWit Support Arrives for BitPay Invoices
The wait is finally over, though, as all BitPay invoices now support SegWit. More specifically, they are compatible with Bitcoin wallets which have this scaling solution enabled. It’s a big step in the right direction for the Bitcoin industry. Due to the different transaction format originating from these wallets, native support took some extra work. It’s good to see the company come through in the end. Quite a few people had already given up hope in this regard.
BitPay had to upgrade their node software to fully support SegWit. It is evident this switch is about more than just a few lines of code. There are many benefits to paying using Segregated Witness. More specifically, it reduces transaction fees and can lead to faster transactions. This will only work when the majority of Bitcoin transactions use this solution. Right now, that is not the case whatsoever. Adoption of SegWit has been stuck below 15% for some time now.
For the users, nothing will change. They simply get the added benefit of using a SegWit-capable wallet for BitPay invoices. It adds more convenience and helps the Bitcoin network evolve as a whole. The company recommends using the Electrum Wallet for added reliability. A few other solutions are capable of using this format as well, though. This is another big step forward for Bitcoin. Whether or not it will make any major impact, is a different matter altogether.
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