Pick n Pay rolls out Bitcoin payments to 1,500 stores
CryptoConvert has announced that its CryptoQR platform is now active at all Pick n Pay stores around South Africa, allowing shoppers to pay with Bitcoin using the Lightning network.
The rollout includes PnP Express and Pick n Pay Clothing. Shoppers can also buy airtime, electricity, flight and bus tickets, and pay municipal bills with Bitcoin at the till.
This comes after Pick n Pay expanded its Bitcoin payments trial to 39 stores in November last year.
Pick n Pay partnered with Electrum and CryptoConvert to develop the system.
Electrum’s payment platform connects CryptoConvert and Pick n Pay, letting customers pay with the Bitcoin Lightning technology at the till point.
“While for many years crypto was something for specialists on their computers, or used by early adopters trying it out, things are changing,” Pick n Pay stated.
Pick n Pay said the Financial Sector Conduct Authority’s declaration of cryptocurrency as a financial product paves the way for cryptocurrency as a mainstream payment method.
“Increasingly, cryptocurrency is being used by those under-served by traditional banking systems, or by those wanting to pay and exchange money in a cheaper and really convenient way,” it said.
CryptoConvert founder Carel van Wyk, who also co-founded South Africa’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Luno, confirmed that CryptoQR is now available at all 1,500 Pick n Pay outlets in South Africa.
“Ask for the ‘Contactless QR’ payment option and use the CryptoQR QR scanner app with your favourite Lightning wallet,” said Van Wyk.
The Lightning Network is a scaling layer for Bitcoin that offers near-instant transactions and lower network fees.
Regular transactions on the Bitcoin blockchain can take between 30 minutes and an hour to settle, depending on how sure the receiver wants to be that it is legitimate.
Transactions can also become quite expensive if the blockchain becomes busy.
The Lightning Network provides a separate infrastructure layer on which Bitcoin transactions can execute quickly and cheaply, with settlement happening on the main Bitcoin blockchain later.
MyBroadband tested Pick n Pay’s Bitcoin payments system at its Centurion Mall store last year and found it easy to use.
To use the feature, shoppers must install a Lightning network-compatible Bitcoin wallet on their phone, like BlueWallet or Muun, and transfer some Bitcoin to it.
You must also install the CryptoQR app.
When checking out, select the Contactless QR payment option on the card terminal, scan the QR code with CryptoQR, and approve the transaction in the wallet.
Taking into account all costs, including the network fee and slippage in the Bitcoin exchange rate, the transaction cost R0.06.
“Cryptocurrency combines the convenience of cash with the safety and security of electronic identification measures, like biometrics and cryptographic encryption,” Van Wyk said with the pilot’s launch last year.
“It is also cheaper than credit cards or the cost of cash handling. But more importantly, it is a digital payment that is open to anyone, including those unable to use traditional digital payment options.”
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