I noticed I can buy cryptocurrencies through PayPal this morning when I logged in, but after reading the FAQ section I question their intentions.

So I log into my PayPal account this morning and notice, for the first time, that they're advertising the ability to buy cryptocurrency. There's only a handful, Bitcoin, Bitcoin cash, Ethereum, and Litecoin .

This is a bit unexpected IMO, so I click around on all the FAQs and info links. The FAQ starts out hopeful, albeit not perfect:

Can I use crypto to pay or send money? You currently can't use crypto to pay or send money on PayPal. However, when you shop with PayPal, you can seamlessly cash out enough to pay the merchant in USD right from checkout..

That seems like a step in the right direction, right? Well as I continue down the FAQ section I noticed a big red flag towards the bottom:

Can I transfer crypto into and out of PayPal? Currently, you can only hold the crypto that you buy on PayPal in your account. Additionally, the crypto in your account cannot be transferred to other accounts on or off PayPal.

So that's pretty scary. However, I still am thinking that maybe the net gain here is exposing more people to the familiarity of cryptocurrency and slowly building confidence over time. With PayPal's reach, this could still be a good thing, right? Well, their intentions become less sunshiny as I make my way to the bottom of the FAQ :

Will I get a private key for the crypto I buy on PayPal? You own the crypto you buy on PayPal but will not be provided with a private key. In case you're wondering, a private key is a person's secret code to access and manage their crypto. If lost, stolen, or even forgotten they can never get to their crypto again -- pretty risky in its own right. As long as you can log in to your PayPal account, your crypto will always be at your fingertips.

So there it is; PayPal wants you to buy crypto, but won't let you transfer it out of your account, and won't let you have access to your private keys.