Tourist Hotspot’s Bitcoin, Ether, Altcoin Pay Pilot in Full Swing
The company behind a crypto pay pilot program at two of South Korea’s busiest beaches said that it believes token-powered payments could be set to change the way people in the country pay for goods and services.
As previously reported, the pilot project is being run by CIC Enterprise, an affiliate of Bitbeat, has teamed up with Innotech, the firm that processes card and cash payments for the Haeundae Beach Sysetm at rental outlets on the beaches of Busan – the nation’s second city and most vibrant summer tourism hotspot.
The project allows beachgoers to pay for parasol rental, inflatables, water sports-related activities, life jackets and more in bitcoin (BTC) and ethereum (ETH) – as well as two ERC20 tokens (MCI and WAY).
Per ZDnet, Bitbeat said the project is now in full swing, and claims that tourists coming to the beach can process payments “in five to 10 seconds,” using smartphone-based QR codes for “any ethereum wallet in the world.”
The operator stated that other similar crypto pay projects typically require customers to download separate apps or purchase their own tokens on less well-known blockchain networks.
Busan is known to be keen to adopt more crypto pay projects throughout the city, and has been granted regulatory sandbox status by the central government for blockchain-related projects.
However, Seoul remains guarded about all things crypto-related after embarking on a partial crypto-crackdown following feverish trading activity at the height of the 2017 crypto bubble.
Regardless, a number of major companies have been looking into crypto-related services, and many believe Seoul’s stance has softened.
Bitbeat stated,
“We hope that [crypto assets], like those used by the Haeundae Beach System, will become used more widely in everyday scenarios. We will try to help build up a crypto payment environment.”
Busan estimates that on busy summer days, tens of thousands of locals and out-of-town visitors come to Haeundae Beach, with most choosing to rent items rather than bring their own.
Another nearby beach, Songjeong, a hit among surfers, is also running the crypto pay pilot until the end of the summer season.
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