Although Google shelved its Plex banking service for Google Pay even before it launched, the company has not given up on making Google Pay a one-stop shop for all your digital payment needs. In a recent interview, the company shared plans to make Google Pay a "comprehensive digital wallet," which might even include support for crypto payments.

According to Bloomberg, Google has hired former PayPal executive Arnold Goldberg as part of its strategy to offer a wider range of financial services through Google Pay, including those with crypto giants Coinbase and BitPay. Although Google hasn't announced any plans to add support for crypto payments to Google Pay, the company is open to adding that functionality in the future if the demand arises. Bill Ready, Google's president of commerce, reportedly said: "Crypto is something we pay a lot of attention to...As user demand and merchant demand evolves, we'll evolve with it."

While cryptocurrency support in Google Pay might still be way into the future, Google is doubling down on blockchain and related technologies. A separate report from Bloomberg reveals that the company is "forming a group dedicated to the blockchain and related technologies under a newly appointed executive who has spent more than a decade on the company's core business of search advertising."

An internal email viewed by Bloomberg notes that Shivakumar Venkataraman is now heading a unit focused on "blockchain and other next-gen distributed computing and data storage technologies." The email further reveals that Venkataraman will become a "founding leader" of Labs -- Google's business division responsible for various virtual and augmented reality efforts.

For more information on these developments, check out the original coverage by following the links above.