- Two of Ukraine’s largest tech retailers now accept bitcoin as payment for goods and services.
- Whitepay provides the necessary payment infrastructure enabling in-store and online purchases.
- Ukrainian demand for daily use of bitcoins increases as war efforts continue.
Two of Ukraine’s largest tech retailers, Techno Їzhak and Stylus, now accept bitcoin as payment for goods and services, according to a report by local news outlet Obozrevatel.
Whitepay, a payment infrastructure provider, serves as the infrastructural backbone to facilitate transactions between customers and merchants. Whitepay is under the same umbrella as WhiteBIT, one of Europe’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges.
Bitcoin can be used with both retailers for purchases online or at their respective outlets, which together number more than 100. For in-store purchases, the Whitepay personalized POS system prints a QR code on a receipt allowing traders to see the exchange rate, type of transaction, network, commissions paid, and time elapsed between the start and end of the transaction.
Ukrainian interest and commercial use of bitcoin increased significantly following the Russian invasion. Previously, the country’s president signed a ‘virtual currency’ bill that provided a legal framework for bitcoin to operate in the economy, as the legislation prevented the government from accepting bitcoin donations at that time. .
The signing of the bill follows increased demand for the use of bitcoin as everyday currency, prompted by the influx of bitcoin donations sent to military aid groups.
Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukrainian Minister of Digital Transformation, recently announcement that $54 million in aid provided through bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies was used to provide planned military support.