Abra now has direct support for bitcoin!

While bitcoin has always powered all of Abra’s transactions underneath the surface, you can now buy, hold, send, and spend bitcoin as a currency directly within the Abra app globally. In the US and the Philippines, you can even buy bitcoin using your bank account with no fee. Given that our bitcoin price is always close to the current USD spot rate, we’re confident that Abra offers the least expensive ACH-based option for buying bitcoin today.

So if you’ve been thinking about buying a bit of bitcoin, there’s no better way than Abra. Abra supports most major banks in the US and the Philippines. Limits apply to bank-based transactions, so check the applicable limits for your country and funding source.* Here are step by step instructions on how to buy bitcoin using your bank account.

With the bitcoin in your Abra wallet, you can shop at any merchant that accepts bitcoin, send or receive from any other external bitcoin wallet, or send funds to any Abra user worldwide.

Also available today:

We now support over 50 currencies. People in almost any country in the world can download Abra and have their wallet denominated in bitcoin, euros, US dollars, Philippine pesos, or any one of our 50+ supported currencies listed within the app. As we build out our Teller network (see below), consumers will be able to cash in and out in any of these currencies. In the meantime , the easiest way for users outside the US and the Philippines to add and withdraw money from the Abra wallet will be bitcoin. Visit our website for more information on the services available in each country.

People in almost any country in the world can download Abra and have their wallet denominated in bitcoin, euros, US dollars, Philippine pesos, or any one of our 50+ supported currencies listed within the app. As we build out our Teller network (see below), consumers will be able to cash in and out in any of these currencies. Visit our website for more information on the services available in each country. You send dollars, they receive bitcoin. Say you’re in the US and want to pay someone overseas? Load funds from your US (or Philippines) bank account and you can send to another Abra user who’d like to receive in bitcoin. You can even send directly to any bitcoin address.

Say you’re in the US and want to pay someone overseas? Load funds from your US (or Philippines) bank account and you can send to another Abra user who’d like to receive in bitcoin. You can even send directly to any bitcoin address. You send bitcoin, they receive dollars. Do you hold bitcoin and need to pay someone in the US who doesn’t use bitcoin at all? Simply send your bitcoin to your Abra wallet, then use Abra to make the payment. The recipient will receive the payment as US dollars and can then withdraw the funds to their bank account.

When you sign up for Abra, make sure your wallet is denominated in the currency you prefer to hold. You’ll be defaulted to your home country’s currency (e.g. if you live in the US, your wallet will be denominated in $USD by default). So for example, if you’re receiving bitcoin directly into your Abra wallet rather than adding money from your bank account, be sure to change your wallet currency to ɃBTC before importing your bitcoin in order to avoid exchange fees. You can do this from the Menu within the Abra app.

As previously announced, we’re now also gradually rolling out our global Teller program. The world still operates on cash, and you can’t have a truly global payment solution without a cash-based option. We have thousands of Abra Tellers in the Philippines who are already helping Filipino consumers cash in and out and now we’re growing our Teller program worldwide to help consumers everywhere do the same. For now, the vast majority of our Tellers are in the Philippines but as Teller applications get approved, they will be added to the Teller map within the Abra app. Learn more about Abra Tellers.

We’re committed to our long term vision of simple & secure global peer-to-peer payments. This latest update is the next step in bringing this vision closer to reality.

(PSA: As with any bitcoin wallet, it’s important to back up your wallet in case you ever lose your phone. Abra is a non-custodial bitcoin wallet and we do not have access to your funds. New to bitcoin? Bitcoin.org has some great basic tips on what you need to know, including more info on security.)

* Updated with link to FAQ which provides full and current list of transaction limits.