Australian State Invests in Crypto Tourism

The Australian state of Queensland is taking new measures to promote tourism by investing in a local startup that sells travel experiences for cryptocurrency, according to a statement on the Queensland Government’s website.

Queensland Innovation Minister Kate Jones said the crypto travel startup TravelbyBit would receive funding from the state for their “clever way to make it easier for visitors to our state to pay for their purchases with a growing number of local businesses accepting cryptocurrency payments.”

She added that the government decided to invest in the startup because the ability to use cryptocurrency will attract new types of travelers, which the government expects will ultimately lead to more jobs created in Queensland.

TravelbyBit is a cryptocurrency payment processing platform specifically designed for the travel and tourism industry that helps merchants accept payment in bitcoin, ether, litecoin, and other cryptocurrencies.

“With this next phase of technology, we are targeting a different brand of tourist – the tech-savvy traveler from anywhere in the world who are looking to book their travel experiences ahead of their trip and use digital currency to pay for their travels,” TravelbyBit CEO Caleb Yeoh said in a comment.

The startup has reportedly partnered with more than 150 merchants across Australia to accept digital currencies, and is looking to use the new investment to expand their reach across the country and turn Australia into a more crypto-friendly travel destination for people from around the world.

In January, TravelbyBit published a story about Robert, an eighty-year-old Singaporean Bitcoin investor, who traveled Australia on crypto.