Pick ‘n Pay accepts Bitcoin payments at Point of Sale
Powered by CryptoConvert and Electrum
Retail transactions are the gold standard for any payment mechanism. To work in fast-moving retail environments, a payment mechanism needs to be quick, reliable, and cost-effective. In 2017, Luno conducted a pilot project with Electrum and Pick ‘n Pay to test the feasibility of bitcoin payments at the leading grocer, Pick n Pay. The technology worked, but due to high transaction costs at the time, the product was not ready for mainstream adoption.
Since then, cryptocurrency payments technology has improved drastically. Bitcoin’s Lightning Network has made it possible to process transactions in microseconds and at low cost. Lighting allows micropayments between two parties to happen off-chain, thereby improving processing time and almost eliminating transaction fees – improving the viability of crypto payments.
South African consumers are increasingly owning cryptocurrency, with 15% of the population being crypto users, and 25% with cryptocurrency worth between R100 and R1,000.
Africa has 32 million crypto users and has been widely reported as one of the fastest-growing markets for cryptocurrency adoption – as much as 1200% growth in terms of value received over the past year. Globally, there are over 300 million crypto users, and 18,000 businesses utilizing cryptocurrencies as a payment mechanism.
According to recent data about South African crypto users, a whopping 43% of Luno’s verified customers are South Africans. The leading global cryptocurrency wallet allows customers to load their wallets with as little as R1, ensuring access for all. According to a study by The Financial Mail, 36% of South Africans are interested in using cryptocurrency.
A Rand-denominated API and Lightning integration
For merchants and retailers, integrating their existing payment processor with Lightning technology seems like a daunting, tech-heavy task, and the volatility of Bitcoin provides an added challenge when holding and accepting cryptocurrencies.
To address these problems, Cryptoconvert created a Rand-denominated API that dramatically simplifies the adoption of crypto payments. To make it almost effortless for a retailer like Pick ‘n Pay to start accepting payments in Lightning, we use their existing payment rails. Our integration partner, Electrum, provides a cloud-based transaction platform that integrates the point-of-sale with our crypto transaction platform.
What’s next?
Making it possible for people to pay with crypto in their day-to-day lives within the fast-paced retail industry not only proves how much the technology has developed, but also helps people to use cryptocurrency for everyday transactions, without needing to convert it to cash first.
This also allows communities to grow. Bitcoin Ekasi is an organization that is bringing bitcoin into South African townships by onboarding vendors and educating the community on the benefits of crypto payments. We will be working closely with Pick ‘n Pay to develop and support communities to adopt this payment mechanism in their day-to-day lives.
Our mission is to help build local Bitcoin-powered circular economies based on a global, borderless network of value transfer. We do this by making it safe and simple to accept cryptocurrency payments, online and at the till.
Crypto payments are the future, we will help you be a part of it.
As a crypto payment infrastructure provider, CryptoConvert can integrate cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin into businesses with Lightning Network payments and next-day Rand settlement. With a powerful, but simple API, the CryptoConvert platform provides the ultimate solution for any merchant or business that wants to accept Bitcoin as a form of payment without the associated risks. Learn more about CryptoConvert at www.cryptoconvert.co.za or send us a DM on Twitter – we are excited to hear from you!