Which major companies accept cryptocurrencies as payment
cryptocurrencies as payment?
Cryptocurrencies are the hottest topic nowadays. Cryptocurrencies’ price is volatile and makes news every day. So many firms are investing billions in crypto.
While trading with cryptos is becoming mainstream, the opportunity to spend virtual currencies is somewhat limited in comparison due to their volatility.
There are, however, a growing number of companies across a plethora of industries from big tech to airlines who are embracing cryptocurrencies, allowing the customer to use them as an official method of payment for their good and service.
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List of major companies that accept cryptocurrency
Mastercard
Tesla
Amazon
Coca-cola
Paypal
Microsoft
Starbucks
Expedia
Axa Insurance
Pavilion Hotel
AirBaltic
LOT polish Airways
Lush
Sotheby’s
Visa
Here are some of the biggest and more well-known companies using and accepting cryptocurrencies as payment.
Mastercard
In November, Mastercard said it would allow partners on its network to enable their consumers to buy, sell and hold cryptocurrency using a digit wallet, as well as reward them with cryptocurrencies under their loyalty programs.
The move would allow customers to earn and spend rewards in cryptocurrency rather than loyalty points.
The credit card giant will be pairing up with Bakkt Holding Inc, the digital assets platform founded in 2018 by NYSE-owner Intercontinental Exchange, to offer the new crypto services to its customers.
Pavilion Hotels & Resorts
As the latest company to permit crypto transactions, Hong Kong-based Pavilion Hotels & Resort group has also become the first international hotel chain to embrace virtual currency payments.
The group which owns properties in Amsterdam, Madrid, Lisbon, and Rome, as well as Bali and Phuket, will accept bookings using 40 different tokens including Bitcoin and Ethereum from July through their partnership with payment platform Coindirect.
AXA Insurance
As of the start of April, the insurance broker behemoth will allow customers in Switzerland to use Bitcoin as a payment option for their bills.
The customer will now have a reference code printed on the bill for non-life insurance policies in order to pay their premiums through the crypto exchange Bitcoin Suisse which will then convert them into Swiss.
Microsoft
Microsoft accepts Bitcoin and it can be used to pay for an array of services, including Xbox Live and Skype.
The company’s interest in crypto technology doesn’t end there. Utilising blockchain, Microsoft has also launched ION, a tow layered authentication platform on the Bitcoin network in late March. Instead of payment, the technology creates digital IDs to authenticate online identities.
Starbucks
Starbucks customers can now use the new Bakkt app to pay for drinks and the good at the coffee chain with converted Bitcoin. According to the app’s creators, 500,000 people took up the invitation-only, early access program to test the digital wallet as a method of payment.
Tesla
The CEO of electric carmaker Tesla, Elon Musk has an up-and-down relationship with Bitcoin. Initially, the company announced earlier this year that it would accept Bitcoin payments for vehicle purchases in the US.
It comes off the back of $1.5 billion investment in the cryptocurrency by Elon Musk’s company in February. However, this has been turned on its head with pronouncements that Tesla will put Bitcoin transactions on hold until more than 50 percent of tokens are mined using renewable energy.
Amazon
It was reported earlier this year that Amazon was joining the ranks of other tech giants, including Facebook, in laying the groundwork for its own exclusive cryptocurrency. That said the e-commerce company doesn’t directly accept cryptos yet. You can, however, buy Amazon vouchers through crypto-only company Bitrefill, a platform that makes a living on cryptocurrencies easier by converting Bitcoin into gifts, refilling phones,s and so on.
Visa
Credit card company Visa confirmed at the end of March that it was piloting a scheme with the platform Crypto.com to accept cryptocurrency to settle transactions on its payment network. It will now accept USD Coin (USDC), a stablecoin crypto that is pegged to the value of the US dollar.
PayPal
Following an announcement in October last year, PayPal users in the US can now buy, sell or hold a select few cryptos, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, and Litecoin. In addition, you’ll be able to track cryptocurrencies through the PayPal app.
In August the company announced that users in the UK can now trade in Ether, Litecoin, and Bitcoin Cash on PayPal’s website and mobile app.
airBaltic
Latvian airline airBaltic became the first aviation company in the world to accept Bitcoin as payment, it has processed more than 1,000 Bitcoin transactions since it launched the payment option seven-year ago. Its decision to do so saw another eastern European airline, LOT Polish Airlines, follow suit the following year.
Sotheby’s
Renowned auction house Sotheby’s first began accepting cryptocurrency as payment in late June and has since firmly embraced both cryptos and NFTs.
Since it announced it now accepted cryptos, it accepted Bitcoin as payment for a rare 101-carat diamond that sold in Jul for $12.3 million. It became the most valuable item ever bought with cryptocurrency at an auction.
The auction house will accept cryptocurrencies both Bitcoin and Ethereum as payment. There are certain restrictions, however as payment will only be accepted through certain approved exchange wallets, including Coinbase.
Check the current best Bitcoin exchange in the world today.
Coca Cola
Amatil, the drinks giant’s bottler and distributor in the Asia-Pacific region, has enabled cryptocurrency as a method of payment through its partnership with the Centrapay platform. As of 2020, there is now over 2,000 vending machine in Australia and New Zealand which are geared to accept cryptos as payment for drinks.
LOT Polish Airlines
Following in the wake of airBaltic, LOT Polish Airlines announced in 2015 that it would also accept Bitcoin as a payment method for flights. Despite the six years that have passed since its decision, LOT remains one of the European airlines to allow cryptocurrency as a payment option.
Expedia
Travel giant Expedia is one of the most prominent travel agencies to accept Bitcoin through its partnership with crypto-friendly travel booking platform Travala. You can now book 700,000 hotels from the website listing with more than 30 cryptos including Bitcoin.
Lush
Lush was one of the first global companies to adapt to the use of cryptocurrencies, fully embracing them in 2017 when the handmade cosmetics company started to allow Bitcoin payment for orders on its website through a partnership with Bitpay.com.
Conclusion
As cryptocurrencies are gaining popularity every day, so there are a number of companies or firm which has started to accept cryptocurrencies. In the future, we will find more names on this list.\
Also, read about the different cryptocurrencies
