Cryptocurrency payment network

1. A method of settling a transaction between a customer and a merchant, comprising:

receiving, by a payment service from a point-of-sale system associated with the merchant, a request for payment associated with the transaction, wherein a payment amount is specified in a fiat currency;

sending, to a computing device associated with the customer, information to display the request for payment with different payment options, wherein the payment options include a fiat currency payment option and a cryptocurrency payment option;

receiving, from the computing device associated with the customer, input selecting the cryptocurrency payment option to pay for the transaction;

determining, by the payment service, an exchange rate between the cryptocurrency and the fiat currency;

calculating, by the payment service, a cryptocurrency value of the payment based on the determined exchange rate between the cryptocurrency and the fiat currency;

initiating, by the payment service, a transfer of the cryptocurrency value from a customer balance of the customer to a service balance of the payment service, wherein the customer balance and the service balance each includes cryptocurrency values and fiat currency values and is stored in a data structure maintained by the payment service;

initiating, by the payment service, a transfer of a value in the fiat currency from the service balance of the payment service to a merchant balance of the merchant, wherein the merchant balance is stored in the data structure maintained by the payment service; and

storing, by the payment service, a record of the transaction between the customer and the merchant.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the initiating a transfer of the cryptocurrency value from a customer balance of the customer to a service balance of the payment service comprises:

debiting the cryptocurrency value from the customer balance; and

crediting the cryptocurrency value to the payment balance.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the customer balance is associated with a third-party cryptocurrency wallet owned by the customer, and wherein the initiating a transfer of the cryptocurrency value from a customer balance of the customer to a service balance of the payment service comprises:

initiating a transfer of the cryptocurrency value from the third-party cryptocurrency wallet to a cryptocurrency wallet of the payment service by recording the transfer on a blockchain associated with the cryptocurrency.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the transfer of a value in the fiat currency from the service balance of the payment service to a merchant balance of the merchant is only initiated after the transfer has been recorded on the blockchain.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the request for payment comprises:

a customer identifier corresponding to the customer; and

a merchant identifier corresponding to the merchant.

6. The method of claim 5 , further comprising:

sending, to a computing device associated with the merchant, a report associated with the record of the transaction, wherein the report specifies the customer identifier and an amount paid as the value in the fiat currency without disclosing that the payment was made in the cryptocurrency.

7. A method of settling a transaction between a customer and a merchant, comprising:

receiving, by a payment service from a point-of-sale system associated with the merchant, a request for payment associated with the transaction, wherein a payment amount is specified in a fiat currency;

determining, by the payment service, a preference of the customer to pay for the transaction using a cryptocurrency;

calculating, by the payment service, a cryptocurrency value of the payment based on an exchange rate between the cryptocurrency and the fiat currency;

initiating, by the payment service, a transfer of cryptocurrency value from a customer balance of the customer to a service balance of the payment service;

initiating, by the payment service, a transfer of a value in the fiat currency from the service balance of the payment service to a merchant balance of the merchant; and

generating, by the payment service, a record of the transaction between the customer and the merchant.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the determining a preference of the customer to pay for the transaction using a cryptocurrency comprises:

sending, to a computing device associated with the customer, information to display the request for payment with different payment options, wherein the payment options include a fiat currency payment option and a cryptocurrency payment option; and

receiving, from the computing device associated with the customer, input selecting the cryptocurrency payment option.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the information to display the request for payment with different payment options includes information specifying the exchange rate between the cryptocurrency and the fiat currency.

10. The method of claim 7 , wherein the determining a preference of the customer to pay for the transaction using a cryptocurrency comprises:

receiving information regarding a payment card linked to the customer balance, wherein the payment card is registered with the payment service; and

retrieving, based on the information regarding the payment card, preference information of the customer.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the payment card is linked to multiple payment accounts of the customer, and wherein the preference information of the customer is stored in a customer profile for the customer.

12. The method of claim 7 , wherein the customer has multiple payment accounts with the payment service, each of the payment accounts being associated with a different currency, and wherein determining a preference of the customer to pay for the transaction using a cryptocurrency comprises:

determining exchange rates between each of the different currencies and the fiat currency, wherein the determined exchange rates comprise the exchange rate between the cryptocurrency and the fiat currency;

determining that the exchange rate between the cryptocurrency and the fiat currency is most favorable for the customer.

13. The method of claim 7 , wherein the initiating a transfer of the cryptocurrency value from a customer balance of the customer to a service balance of the payment service comprises:

debiting the cryptocurrency value from the customer balance; and

crediting the cryptocurrency value to the payment balance.

14. The method of claim 7 , wherein the customer balance is associated with a third-party cryptocurrency wallet owned by the customer, and wherein the initiating a transfer of the cryptocurrency value from a customer balance of the customer to a service balance of the payment service comprises:

initiating a transfer of the cryptocurrency value from the third-party cryptocurrency wallet to a cryptocurrency wallet of the payment service by recording the transfer on a blockchain associated with the cryptocurrency.

15. The method of claim 14 , wherein the transfer of a value in the fiat currency from the service balance of the payment service to a merchant balance of the merchant is only initiated after the transfer has been recorded on the blockchain.

16. The method of claim 7 , wherein the request for payment comprises:

a customer identifier corresponding to the customer; and

a merchant identifier corresponding to the merchant.

17. The method of claim 16 , further comprising:

sending, to a computing device associated with the merchant, a report associated with the record of the transaction, wherein the report specifies the customer identifier and an amount paid as the value in the fiat currency without disclosing that the payment was made in the cryptocurrency.

18. One or more computer-readable non-transitory storage media embodying software for settling a transaction between a customer and a merchant comprising instructions operable when executed to:

receive, by a payment service from a point-of-sale system associated with the merchant, a request for payment associated with the transaction, wherein a payment amount is specified in a fiat currency;

determine, by the payment service, a preference of the customer to pay for the transaction using a cryptocurrency;

calculate, by the payment service, a cryptocurrency value of the payment based on an exchange rate between the cryptocurrency and the fiat currency;

initiate, by the payment service, a transfer of cryptocurrency value from a customer balance of the customer to a service balance of the payment service;

initiate, by the payment service, a transfer of a value in the fiat currency from the service balance of the payment service to a merchant balance of the merchant; and

generate, by the payment service, a record of the transaction between the customer and the merchant.

19. A payment service system comprising one or more computer servers, each of the computer servers comprising one or more processors and a memory coupled to the processors comprising instructions executable by the processors, the processors being operable when executing the instructions to:

receive, by a payment service from a point-of-sale system associated with the merchant, a request for payment associated with the transaction, wherein a payment amount is specified in a fiat currency;

determine, by the payment service, a preference of the customer to pay for the transaction using a cryptocurrency;

calculate, by the payment service, a cryptocurrency value of the payment based on an exchange rate between the cryptocurrency and the fiat currency;

initiate, by the payment service, a transfer of cryptocurrency value from a customer balance of the customer to a service balance of the payment service;

initiate, by the payment service, a transfer of a value in the fiat currency from the service balance of the payment service to a merchant balance of the merchant; and

generate, by the payment service, a record of the transaction between the customer and the merchant.

20. The system of claim 19 , wherein the instructions executable to initiate a transfer of the cryptocurrency value from a customer balance of the customer to a service balance of the payment service comprises instructions executable to:

debit the cryptocurrency value from the customer balance; and

credit the cryptocurrency value to the payment balance.