Swiss supermarket introduces Bitcoin payments by flash

Supermarket in Zug, Switzerland, now accepts Bitcoin payments and thus joins the country's growing list of crypto-friendly retailers in the country.

The local branch of the Global food chain Spar enabled Now, through the Lightning Network-a faster, inexpensive layer that is based on Bitcoin's base blockchain-with Bitcoin.

The shop was listed on BTC MAP, a crowdsourcing platform that deals with the dealers, the BTC payments accept. The news was shared by DFX Swiss, a provider of payment tools for the exchange of cryptocurrencies in Fiat currencies, which indicated that Spar in Zug is one of the first supermarkets in the country, supports direct Bitcoin payments at the cash register. To enable this, the OpenCryptopay solution was used, an open source standard for personal crypto transactions.

Train is no stranger to digital currencies. The city, which is often referred to as part of the “Crypto Valley”, has welcomed blockchain innovations for a long time. The nearby Lugano also made headlines last year when Bitcoin and Tether allowed payments in connection with the government and was therefore one of the first cities worldwide to take this step.

According to BTC MAP, over 1,000 companies in Switzerland have introduced Bitcoin payments.

The payment process with Bitcoin at Spar is remarkably simple. Customers can scan a static QR code and complete their shopping with a Lightning-capable wallet within seconds. According to Rahim Taghizadegan, director of the Bitcoin Association Switzerland, the procedure is so fast that it does not bother the payment process at all. He added that a broader introduction in the whole country could follow if the solution in Zug has proven to be sufficient.

The global presence of Spar makes this step significant. The retailer operates almost 14,000 branches in 48 countries, serves more than 14 million customers every day and employs almost half a million people.