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In a direct reply to a post from Ethereum’s official account, ZachXBT wrote the following about X:
“Proton does not currently accept Ethereum as a subscription-only payment option Bitcoin.
The pseudonymous investigator, known for tracking stolen funds and exposing industry-wide fraud, left the correction intact with a screenshot attached, a characteristically candid fact-check delivered to an account with millions of followers.
ZachXBT has spent much of this year building exactly this reputation with recent work including an investigation into which 95% of the LAB token supply was allegedly controlled by insiders and a warning that Humanity Protocol’s $32 million hack “may have been staged.”
What protons actually accept
Proton’s own support documents corroborated the Swiss company, best known for its encrypted Proton Mail email service and VPN, to investigators, saying users can “pay for their Proton subscriptions in the following ways.” Bitcoin”, at least where cryptography I’m worried.
The process is intentionally simple when manual; all the user has to do is make a selection. Bitcoin Scan the QR code at checkout or $BTC Enter your address and wait for your network to be verified (verification may take up to 24 hours). Automatic updates are not available Bitcoin That’s why Proton advises you to make payments at least 24 hours before your bill is due.
of the company Bitcoin The integration goes even deeper than a checkout option, given that in 2024 Proton launched a self-custodial service, Proton Wallet. Bitcoin Storage solutions available for the web, iOS, and Android (products built around it) $BTC (Ether or ERC-20 tokens are not supported).
Awkward moments in Ethereum’s payments drive
The jab arrives at a delicate time for Ethereum’s public positioning, given that Ethereum’s parent company has witnessed a mass exodus of talent over the past quarter. Additionally, the Ethereum Foundation announced a formal privacy commitment late last year, and has since narrowed its priorities to what it calls CROPS (Censorship Resistance, Capture Resistance, Openness, Privacy, and Security). Payment adoption features heavily in the Foundation’s 2026 Action Plan, and network marketing is increasingly of interest to privacy-conscious users.
Proton is perhaps the world’s most well-known privacy technology brand, with services ranging from email, cloud storage, passwords, and VPNs (and if you want cryptocurrency, Bitcoin), which is exactly why ZachXBT’s fix was so off-putting. Ethereum’s marketing push to check the privacy economy by name has led to obvious objections that the main players in the space are channeling funds through competing chains.
