TL;DR: Welcome to In Case You Missed It (ICYMI), a daily crypto news update. Cash App will allow users to receive stimulus payments directly. PayPal to offer US coronavirus loans. Starbucks testing Bakkt cash payment integration. Chinese tech giants dominated patent filing numbers last year. Bitcoin Cash on top of retail spending last month in Australia, and Spain looks to introduce a permanent Universal Basic Income program in the near future.

Cash App Will Allow Users to Receive Stimulus Payments Directly

Cash App, the Square powered mobile payment platform, recently announced it will allow users to receive stimulus payments directly to their cash accounts. In a PR statement Cash App explained they now offer “account and routing numbers that you can use to deposit your stimulus payment directly to your Cash App balance.” Cash App is one of the first fintech companies helping with the distribution of coronavirus stimulus payments after Square’s CEO, Jack Dorsey, suggested it via his Twitter account.

PayPal to Offer US Coronavirus Related Loans

PayPal announced last Friday it will offer coronavirus related loans to small business through the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Paycheck Protection Program, being the first fintech institution providing these services. Dan Schulman, CEO of PayPal stated that “small businesses have been hit especially hard by the coronavirus crisis. There is an urgent need to help every qualified business access the funding needed,” and also thanked Congress for the opportunity at distributing these funds quickly among the needy.

Starbucks Debuts Bakkt Payment Integration

As global markets shed trillions of dollars, empowering consumers with new spending power more important than ever — Adam White (@WhiteAdamL) March 16, 2020

Starbucks is now testing its payment integration with Bakkt, the Bitcoin derivatives exchange, in its mobile app. The option of paying with “Bakkt Cash” is being presented to the users of Starbucks mobile app as well. However, a Starbucks spokesperson declared paying with Bakkt Cash is still in early stages of testing. Starbucks has been linked with Bakkt since their early announcement last year, marketing themselves as the easiest way of buying Starbucks coffee with crypto in the future.

Chinese Tech Giants Dominated Blockchain Patent Portfolio In 2019

Chinese tech giant companies like Tencent and Alibaba were the big leaders in the blockchain patent landscape last year, according to research by The Block. Tencent and Alibaba introduced 20% of the blockchain-related patents last year, presenting more than 1,200 applications. Chinese companies filed the majority of blockchain patents last year. The US trails in second place with important companies like Walmart and IBM.

Bitcoin Cash Tops Crypto Retail Spending in Australia

Bitcoin BCH released its Australia retail cryptocurrency expenditure report corresponding to March 2020, showing that Bitcoin Cash still leads in volume and number of transactions. The report states Bitcoin Cash accounted for 97.6% of physical store sales during the month, adding dozens of new merchants like Otto’s Market, while other cryptocurrencies’ usage fell sharply 24% compared to the previous month’s numbers. The second most used cryptocurrency was BTC, with a payment volume of less than $1,000.

Spain to Launch Universal Basic Income Program

Spain is preparing to approve a Universal Basic Income program to help their low-income citizens get through the coronavirus pandemic. The minister for economic affairs, Nadia Calviño, declared that while this plan is being targeted to help citizens during this particular set of circumstances, it will be designed to be permanent. “We’re going to do it as soon as possible. So it can be useful, not just for this extraordinary situation, and that it remains forever,” Calviño stressed to La Sexta.

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