The ‘Venmo moment’ for crypto? Binance Pay’s scan-and-send upgrade gets us close

Copy-pasting addresses and double-checking characters may soon be obsolete. With Send On-Chain and Send via Contact, Binance Pay reduces crypto transfers to two steps: scan or select, then send. The era of Web3 wallet gymnastics seems over.

According to a press release shared with crypto.news on July 3, Binance Pay has rolled out two major features aimed at bridging the gap between traditional digital payments and crypto’s often cumbersome transfer process.

The Send On-Chain and Send via Contact upgrades allow users to send over 300 cryptocurrencies either by selecting a recipient from their phone contacts or scanning a QR code for on-chain transactions—eliminating manual address entry and gas fees for peer-to-peer transfers.

Jonathan Lim, Global Head of Binance Pay, framed the move as part of a broader push to “merge off-chain and on-chain transfers” into one seamless experience.

“These features are part of our broader mission to bring everyday utility to digital assets and simplify the way people connect, pay, and transfer value globally,” Lim stated.

How Binance Pay is rewiring crypto payments

The new features address two of crypto’s most persistent UX headaches: peer-to-peer transfers and on-chain transactions. Send via Contact effectively turns a user’s phone directory into a payment network, creating a three-step flow, select a contact, choose an amount, confirm the transaction.

If the recipient isn’t on Binance, the sender can onboard them directly from the app, creating a built-in viral growth loop.

For external wallets, Send On-Chain’s image recognition can decode a wallet address from a screenshot or photo, while QR scans bypass manual entry entirely. The system even cross-checks characters for common errors like mistaking “0” for “O.” It may seem like a minor upgrade, but it’s a critical safeguard given blockchain’s unforgiving nature when addresses are misentered.

For users, the benefits are immediate. Stablecoin transfers between Binance Pay users now mirror the speed of messaging apps, with no gas fees eating into small payments. This is a game-changer for remittances or splitting bills.

Merchants gain too. The same QR system powering the French Riviera rollout, where 80+ businesses now accept crypto, can now be used for peer-to-peer transactions. This level of interoperability suggests Binance is building an ecosystem where crypto moves as fluidly between individuals as it does at checkout counters.

Binance’s ambitions for everyday crypto usability

This isn’t Binance Pay’s first move toward real-world utility. Just days before this update, the service partnered with French fintech Lyzi to bring crypto payments to luxury hotels and retailers along the Côte d’Azur, from Cannes’ JW Marriott to Monaco’s high-end boutiques.

Mayor David Lisnard’s public endorsement of the initiative highlighted a growing trend: municipalities and businesses now view crypto payments not as a novelty, but as infrastructure.

When paired with the new Send features, these efforts reveal a broader strategy. Binance isn’t just making crypto easier to use, it’s making the act of transacting disappear into the background, much like contactless cards did for traditional payments.