Retailers at Brisbane Airport (BNE) will
soon be accepting payments in Bitcoin, Dash, Ethereum and other digital
currencies. BNE announced last week that is working with TravelbyBit, in
partnership with a number of terminal retailers to introduce cryptocurrency payments
into its terminal shopping.
Travellers will be able to use TravelbyBit’s cryptocurrency
payment system, to dine and shop at stores such as Botanist, Spoon, Windmill
& Co., and Forte Espresso, as well as nine awpl
stores including Australian Way, Merino Collection, Carry On, Dreamtime Journey
and multiple News Travels across both terminals.
According to the press release, the partnership reinforces
Brisbane Airport’s aim to promote community projects, support local businesses,
improve the passenger experience, and become a leader in the airport digital
innovation space.
Roel Hellemons, Brisbane Airport Corporation (BAC) General
Manager Strategic Planning and Development, said, “Many people around the world
have made money investing in cryptocurrencies and a lot of these people travel
internationally, so it makes sense to offer a digital currency experience
within our terminals.
“We’re also proud to be the first airport in the world to
achieve this in partnership with a small local start-up business such as
TravelbyBit, whose pioneering thinking is drawing attention to Brisbane as a
serious breeding ground of innovative thinking. This is just the beginning for
us as we hope to expand the digital currency option across the business, so
watch this space,” Mr. Hellemons added.
Caleb Yeoh, CEO of TravelbyBit, said, “We are building a
genuine use case for cryptocurrencies in the tourism industry. The application
of digital currencies in this sector makes a lot of sense. Whenever you travel
overseas you have to deal with multiple currencies and you never know what
exchange rates the banks are charging you. Here at TravelbyBit we are promoting
the Bitcoin travel movement. Digital currency for world-wide travel. It’s
simple, safe and there’s no bank fees.”
TravelbyBit received AU$88,070 under the third
round of Advance Queensland’s Ignite Ideas funding
programme, which provides grants of up to 250,000 dollars to support activities
that will test and implement commercialisation plans for a product, process or
service that is at or beyond minimum viable product or market ready stage. TravelbyBit
has built a network of merchants throughout Brisbane who take payments in
digital currencies.
The acceptance of bitcoin, the cyrptocurrency with the largest market cap, for payments has
been limited, while its price reached stratospheric heights last year. The
volatility in price has drawn investors but reduced its attractiveness as
medium of exchange. Payments processor, Stripe, withdrew
support for bitcoin recently quoting slow transaction times and high fees. Digital
gaming platform, Steam, stopped
accepting bitcoins last year. However, Microsoft recently restarted
accepting bitcoin in its Windows and Xbox online stores, after stopping it
earlier in the week.
Meanwhile, regulators
in many countries have issued warnings about cryptocurrencies in recent months.
