PayPal Holdings (PYPL 1.56%) is continuing its never-ending quest to make its Venmo service more convenient. The company announced Monday that it has introduced check-cashing to the service, allowing users to obtain funds from such instruments simply by scanning them into the app with their smart device.
PayPal said this new feature is available to "select" Venmo customers. It did not provide further details about what "select" means, nor did it provide a time frame for wider rollout.
According to the company, the new check cashing capability allows those chosen users to get their funds into the Venmo system within minutes following a very brief review by the company.
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A range of check types can now be handled in this manner, including the government's latest set of stimulus checks aimed at mitigating the economic damage of the coronavirus pandemic.
Late last month, PayPal announced that it would impose no check cashing fees on stimulus checks for its signature PayPal service. This also applies to Venmo, which will not charge its usual 1% fee. This will only apply for a limited time, however.
"We're always looking for new ways to make it easier for our community to access and manage their money, especially as people continue to experience financial hardships amid the global pandemic," Venmo General Manager Darrell Esch said.
Since the popular Venmo is a growth engine for PayPal, it's important for the company to keep honing its competitive edge. Adding check-cashing functionality, which is standard throughout the modern banking sector, should help.
On Monday, PayPal stock performed slightly better than the S&P 500 index, slipping by 1% against the latter's 1.5% decline.
