Pundi X Strikes Deal in Venezuela, Mobile Operator Embraces Crypto Pay

Another two announcements just showed how crypto adoption is growing. This time, the news came from Austria and Venezuela.

One of Austria’s biggest mobile network operators, A1, is to accept in-store payments in six popular cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin at selected stores – with a view to beginning a nationwide rollout.

Per a company news release, A1 says that two of its stores in Vienna and five other A1 outlets in the cities of Salzburg, Linz, Graz, Krems an der Donau and Innsbruck will begin accepting payment in Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dash, Ethereum, Ripple and Stellar.

The company says that it has teamed up with partners Salamantex, Ingenico and Concardis for what it calls an initial “pilot.” The company will make use of a “solution that can be easily integrated into stores’ cash register systems.”

A1 claims that its move will help “test the demand and acceptance of cryptocurrencies in Austria,” and a spokesperson stated,

“Paying with [cryptocurrencies] is becoming increasingly prevalent internationally, and every industry is being affected. No matter whether you are buying takeout coffee or movie tickets, cash has become an obsolete model.”

A1 says it is also working on deals to begin accepting other e-pay services, and will add Alibaba’s Alipay and Tencent’s WeChat Pay options in “late August.”

A1 is not the only telco looking into cryptocurrencies. As reported, AT&T became the first major U.S. mobile carrier to provide a cryptocurrency payment option to customers.

Meanwhile, in South America, Venezuelan department store Traki has expanded its range of crypto-pay options.

The company has partnered with PundiX, who will provide all 49 of Traki’s Venezuelan stores with XPOS blockchain-powered point-of-sale hardware. PundiX claims, per a blog post, that its hardware enables transactions “in Bitcoin, Ethereum, Binance Coin, DAI, XEM, KCS, KNC, and Pundi X’s own tokens, NPXS and NPXSXEM.”

Readers may recall that Traki began accepting Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Litecoin and Dash late last year, and last month announced it would also start accepting payment in the Petro, Venezuela’s state-run cryptocurrency.

PundiX quotes Michael Gomez, the head of the Crypto Assets department at Traki, as stating,

“We aspire to offer the most convenient options for our customers, and cryptocurrency has proven to be an effective payment solution. This partnership solidifies our commitment to make cryptocurrency as easy to use as fiat currency in our stores.”

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Read more:
Towards Crypto Adoption: Four Recent Announcements
Now That Bitcoin ‘is Digital Gold,’ Which Crypto is For Payments?