USDC Issuer Circle Collaborates with Taiwanese Firms to Bring Loyalty Points to Crypto Services

Global fintech firm Circle, which issues dollar-pegged USDC stablecoin, will soon offer loyalty points to stablecoin conversion service in Taiwan.

Circle has collaborated with two Taiwanese firms – crypto exchange BitoGroup and convenience store chain Taiwan FamilyMart – to launch ‘Points-to-Crypto’ service.

Per a Thursday announcement, the collaboration would allow users to convert their FamilyMart loyalty points, to cryptocurrencies like USDC. The service does not involve any transaction fees, and prevents loss of value in loyalty points, it added.

“Customers can indicate the amount of FamiPoints they would like to convert to their desired digital currency on the Taiwan FamilyMart App, and include their BitoPro account details to receive them,” the release read.

FamilyMart is the second-largest convenience store chain in Taiwan, and has been adopting a loyalty point system dubbed ‘FamiPoints.’ The service aims to empower the Taiwanese community to participate in the digital economy seamlessly, said Raagulan Pathy, VP of Asia Pacific for Circle.

Taiwan’s Loyalty Points Craze

Taiwan is one of the nations which is reported to have the highest densities of convenience stores. A Taiwanese think tank revealed Market Intelligence & Consulting Institute (MIC), which surveyed in 2021.

The report showed that “87% of users engage in points accumulation, with an overwhelming 99% of them utilizing points often for product redemptions.”

BitoGroup stated that currently, it has a membership base nearing 800,000 and a commanding market share of close to 90% in Taiwan.

“Through our strategic collaboration with Circle and FamilyMart, we aspire to expand the USDC ecosystem and build a robust Web3 infrastructure in Taiwan,” Titan Cheng, the founder and CEO of BitoGroup, noted.

The collaboration comes weeks after Circle announced a strategic partnership with Coins.ph, a Philippines-based major crypto exchange and digital wallet provider.