Pick n Pay will soon accept bitcoin at all checkout points
Pick n Pay, which has been experimenting with cryptocurrency payments for several years, is expanding its crypto offering, allowing consumers to pay for groceries with crypto in 39 stores across the country.
It plans to roll out the crypto service to all of its stores in the “coming months,” it said in a statement on Tuesday.
This ground-breaking development in the crypto world follows the conclusion of a first phase of a new pilot by the retailer that allows customers to pay with cryptocurrency on their smartphones using a “trusted app”.
“While for many years crypto was something for specialists on their computers, or used by early adopters trying it out, things are changing. The Financial Sector Conduct Authority’s recent announcement paves the way for cryptocurrency as a mainstream payment method,” the retailer said in the statement.
“Cryptocurrency is increasingly used by those who are poorly served by traditional banking systems, or by those who want to pay and exchange money in a cheaper and more convenient way. Many companies are responding to this by accepting bitcoin,” it added.
In its latest pilot, Pick n Pay said it tested a payment service technology that allows customers to buy groceries with cryptocurrency at checkout points with any bitcoin lightning-enabled app, including BlueWallet and Muun. The lightning protocol increases the speed of transactions on the bitcoin network.
Minimal service fee
“The transaction is as easy and secure as swiping a debit or credit card. Customers scan a QR code from the app and accept the rand conversion rate on their smartphone at the time of transaction. The service fee for each transaction is minimal, costing the customer an average of 70c, and taking less than 30 seconds.”
The retailer said it ran the pilot in 10 Western Cape stores over the past five months with pre-selected testers. This included Bitcoin Ekasi in Mossel Bay, which pays non-profit organization The Surfer Kids coaches in bitcoin while simultaneously onboarding township suppliers to accept bitcoin as payment. “As the local Pick n Pay store now accepts bitcoin, the coaches and kids can spend their earnings more widely and conveniently than before.”
Pick n Pay has now extended the pilot to a further 29 stores for testing with customers, with the intention of rolling it out to all stores over the coming months, it said.
The participating stores are:
- Langeberg Shopping Centre, Mosselbay
- Sedgefield
- Stellenbosch Central and Stellenbosch Square
- Paarl Shopping Centre
- Willowbridge
- Local Big Bay
- Table Bay Shopping Centre
- Cavendish
- Kenilworth
- Kenilworth Campus
- Kenilworth Pam Golding
- Seapoint
- Waterfront
- Mall of Africa
- Mall of the North
- Mall of the South
- Menlyn Shopping Centre
- Nelspruit
- PnP on Nicol
- Liberty Midlands Shopping Centre
- The pavilion
- Tshwane Shopping Centre
- Beacon Bay
- Uitenhage
- Bedfordview
- Centurion
- Fourways Shopping Centre
- PnP Qualisave Carlton Center
- PnP Qualisave Diepsloot
- PnP Qualisave Midrand
- PnP Qualisave Rustenburg
- PnP Qualisave Commercial Road
- PnP Qualisave North Beach
- PnP Qualisave The Workshop
- PnP Qualisave Goodwood
- Hyper Bloemfontein
- Hyper Durban North
- Hyper Northgate
- Hyper Ottery
The retailer first began experimenting with bitcoin five years ago, when it ran a pilot in the staff canteen store at its head office in Cape Town. “It proved the concept, but the technology available at the time was too expensive for customers and it took too long to complete the transaction to make it sustainable,” it said.
“This new technology means we can offer an affordable service for high-volume, low-value transactions that will promote financial inclusion in South Africa,” said Pick n Pay’s Group Head of IT, Chris Shortt.
Pick n Pay partnered with Electrum and CryptoConvert for the latest pilot. Electrum’s payment platform connects Cryptoconvert and Pick n Pay, allowing customers to pay with bitcoin lightning technology at the point of checkout. — (c) 2022 NewsCentral Media
