Travel booking site Travala gets Telegram Open Network integration

June 10, 2024 Coin Telegraph

Lufthansa, Eurowings, other travel industry players push forward with Web3

May 12, 2023 Coin Telegraph

After a new travel-focused blockchain hit the scene, major players in the industry are beginning to pivot to integrate Web3 technology.

After the recent launch of the Camino Network travel-focused blockchain, legacy travel companies are looking toward a Web3 future.

Cointelegraph spoke with executives at Europe-based airlines Lufthansa and Eurowings — two of the first companies to use the Camino Network — to understand how Web3 integrations bring this industry to its next generation.

Johannes Walter, the head of channel partners at Lufthansa Group, said he believes “decentralization and tokenization” will create opportunities for new business models and relationships, “from building more direct, strategic partnerships and improving transparency to creating new revenue streams and enhancing the customer experience.”

“We aim to deeply understand the space to create long-term value for our customers and partners that aligns with our brand strategy.“

Data from a 2021 Statista report shows the travel and tourism industry’s contribution to the global gross domestic product was around $5.8 billion that year.

Jens Bischof, the CEO and chief customer officer of Eurowings, echoed this sentiment, saying that the travel industry is one of the “largest industries in the world,” which deals with large quantities of “sensitive data” every day.

“Web3 offers Eurowings a way to meet these demands cost-efficiently and with maximum security.”

Bischof also commented that the company is currently investigating how to use blockchain for customer loyalty.

Other companies in the travel industry have already employed blockchain-based solutions in their operations before the launch of Camino. Air Canada and Etihad Airways both integrated the Winding Tree blockchain for product distribution purposes without the need for third parties.

Despite the increased adoption, Bischof pointed out that a deterrence to mass adoption is the lack of clear regulation.

“Nevertheless, as big players worldwide are adopting Web3 technology and European institutions are at the forefront of crypto regulation [MiCA], we are looking into a promising future of driving our [industry] forward.”

Lawmakers in Europe recently gave their final blessing to the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets legislation. This also comes as local lawmakers consider another piece of legislation called the AI Act to regulate the development and deployment of artificial intelligence.

Other potential use cases of Web3 technologies integrated into the travel industry have already begun popping up. Using the metaverse has been discussed to “inspire travelers” before taking a trip to what a given destination has to offer via virtual experiences.

Nonfungible tokens have also been on the table for use as NFTickets, which could allow revenue increases for airlines via secondary market resales.

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FATF agrees on roadmap for implementation of crypto standards

February 24, 2023 Coin Telegraph

AML

Part of the FATF's ‘Travel Rule’ includes recommendations that financial institutions obtain information on the originators and beneficiaries of certain crypto transactions.

The Financial Action Task Force, or FATF, reported its delegates had come to an agreement on an action plan “to drive timely global implementation” of global standards on cryptocurrencies.

In a Feb. 24 publication, the FATF said the plenary for the financial watchdog — consisting of delegates from more than 200 jurisdictions — met in Paris and came to a consensus on a roadmap aimed at strengthening “implementation of FATF Standards on virtual assets and virtual asset service providers”. According to the task force, in 2024 it will report on how FATF members have moved forward on implementing the crypto standards, which includes regulation and supervision of VASPs.

“The lack of regulation of virtual assets in many countries creates opportunities that criminals and terrorist financiers exploit,” said the report. “Since the FATF strengthened its Recommendation 15 in October 2018 to address virtual assets and virtual asset service providers, many countries have failed to implement these revised requirements, including the ‘travel rule’ which requires obtaining, holding and transmitting originator and beneficiary information relating to virtual assets transactions.”

The FATF plenary has concluded. Delegates of governments from around the world discussed a range of money laundering and terrorist financing issues.

See the outcomes of the plenary here➡️ https://t.co/FdC6ILFNRW
#FollowTheMoney pic.twitter.com/Ja0tLFrca5
— FATF (@FATFNews) February 24, 2023

Part of the FATF's ‘Travel Rule’ includes recommendations that VASPs, financial institutions, and regulated entities in member jurisdictions obtain information on the originators and beneficiaries of certain virtual currency transactions. As of April 2022, the financial watchdog reported that many countries were not in compliance with its standards on Combating the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML).

Japan, South Korea and Singapore have been among the countries seemingly most willing to implement regulations in accordance with the travel rule. Some nations including Iran and North Korea have reportedly been placed on the FATF’s ‘grey list’ for monitoring suspicious financial activity.

Metaverse experience to sway real-world travel choices in 2023: Survey

December 17, 2022 Coin Telegraph

Coin Telegraph

A survey participated by 24,179 respondents across 32 countries reveal that nearly half, or 43% of the respondents, intend to use virtual reality to inspire their choices.

As borders open up following prolonged COVID-induced travel restrictions, the Metaverse, one of the latest sub-crypto ecosystems, is set to help travelers decide on the destinations they want to experience in person, reveals a new survey conducted by Booking.com personally.

Popular online travel agency Booking.com surveyed 24,179 respondents across 32 countries, which revealed travelers’ strong interest in virtually exploring destinations as they decide on their itinerary. Out of the lot, people most likely to try out travel experiences in the metaverse were Gen Z (45%) and Millennials (43%).

Nearly half, or 43% of the respondents, confirmed their will to use virtual reality to inspire their choices. Among this group, around 4574 participants believe in traveling to new places only after experiencing it virtually.

Moreover, over 35% of the respondents are open to spending multiple days in the Metaverse to get the hang of the surroundings offered across popular destinations. According to Booking.com, supporting technologies such as haptic feedback will help improve this experience by allowing users to experience sandy beaches and tropical sun without stepping outside.

*Most popular type of vacation. Source: Booking.com*

However, 60% of the respondents believe that the experiences the Metaverse and virtual technologies offer don’t come close to in-person experiences. Some of the most popular destinations for 2023 include São Paulo (Brazil), Pondicherry (India), Hobart (Australia) and Bolzano (Italy).

Tech giant Microsoft’s plan to step into the Metaverse business hit a massive roadblock after the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC) sought to block the acquisition of Activision Blizzard.

The acquisition of Activision Blizzard for $69 billion would have played “a key role in the development of metaverse platforms,” according to Microsoft CEO and chairman Satya Nadella. However, the FTC pointed out Microsoft’s anti-competitive practices, wherein the company limited the distribution of console games after acquiring rival gaming companies.

Tourists flock to El Salvador despite Bitcoin bear market

August 4, 2022 Coin Telegraph

Coin Telegraph

El Salvador, the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender, has seen explosive growth in tourism numbers in the first half of 2022.

Tourism in El Salvador has soared in the first half of 2022. Up 82.8% just this year, there were 1.1 million visitors to El Salvador this year, according to government figures. That's despite the price of Bitcoin (BTC) sinking almost 50% since Jan. 1.

Data from the World Travel Organization reinforces the claims. The tiny Central American country is internationally recognized as “one of the countries with the best rate of tourism recovery in the region as of January 2022.”

El Salvador es reconocido internacionalmente como uno de los países con mejor ritmo de recuperación turística en la región a enero 2022.

Según datos de la @UNWTO, el país posee una recuperación del 81%, más información en el siguiente enlace:
https://t.co/Y9WVK1VJLe pic.twitter.com/wu7Jl25pEK
— Ministerio de Turismo (@MITURElSalvador) March 31, 2022

The report by the WTO states that some “Central American destinations have the best results compared to 2019,” including El Salvador at +81% compared with 2019, or pre-pandemic levels.

Contrary to reports from the Wall Street Journal that El Salvador’s bet on Bitcoin to attract tourists “hasn’t worked,” visits for the first half of this year almost outpace total visits in 2019: 1.1 million people visited the country in six months, compared to last year's total of 1.2 million.

In a radio interview, the General Director of Strategic Projects Ministry of Tourism of El Salvador, Alex Bonilla, explained that over the summer holiday period, the country can expect “57,500 international visitors, which will generate $60 million in foreign exchange during this vacation." It is expected that the 1.2 million figure mark will be beaten soon.

El Director de Proyectos Estratégicos, @alexboSV, ya se encuentra en radio @SonoraFM_sv para hablar del desempeño del turismo en estas vacaciones.

¡No te la pierdas por 104.5FM! pic.twitter.com/HLwVeugQK6
— Ministerio de Turismo (@MITURElSalvador) August 2, 2022

Since El Salvador adopted Bitcoin as legal tender, thousands of Bitcoiners have made the trip. Big-name Bitcoiners such as Jeff Booth, entrepreneur and author of Price of Tomorrow, Obi Nwosu, CEO of Fedimint the decentralized community custody solution, and Samson Mow, CEO of Jan3, have all taken pilgrimages to El Salvador.

A
1) El Salvador has reaffirmed to me what I have learned from my travels throughout the world.

The vast majority of people in this world are beautiful people.

With similar hopes and dreams for a better life for themselves and their families, trying their best to achieve it
— Jeff Booth (@JeffBooth) April 4, 2022

As Tone Vays, a Bitcoin analyst, said of his visit to El Salvador, “99.9% of the world had no clue where this country was; maybe 98% didn’t know this country ever existed–they’re [El Salvador] certainly on the map now.” Bitcoin advocates are keen to bring home exuberant tales of their trip to the land of volcanoes. At the same time, Bitcoin-centric companies are motivated to make El Salvador's Bitcoin play a success.

Max Keiser and Stacey Herbert, Bitcoin OGs, chose to take up residency in El Salvador and now base their podcasting and broadcasting operations on El Salvador. As part of the Bitcoin Bill, residency in El Salvador could effectively be bought for 3 BTC ($66,000) as part of an investment into the country.

El Salvador, known as “El Hodlador” in some circles, also hosted a bevy of central bankers in May this year. The influential group of visitors “did not discuss Bitcoin,” according to the Central Bank of Paraguay, whose delegate was a tourist in El Salvador. However, there were numerous photos of the 44 central bankers and economists using the Bitcoin Beach Wallet in El Zonte, the birthplace of BTC adoption in the country.

The capital, San Salvador, hosts the Adopting Bitcoin conference, a Lightning Summit in November this year. Over 80 Bitcoin and Lightning Network experts will take to the stage during the conference, with representatives from Blockstream, Spiral and the El Salvador government.

Packed your Bitcoin? A BTC holiday in Costa Rica goes fiat free

July 21, 2022 Coin Telegraph

Bitcoin Payments

A Bitcoiner in Costa Rica had a “win-win” experience when he went on holiday and only spent Satoshis (Bitcoin) while traveling along the pacific coast.

Passport, sunglasses, beach towel, Bitcoin (BTC)? A BTC enthusiast on vacation demonstrated that the world's largest cryptocurrency could soon become a holiday essential. Eugenio, a Costa Rican Bitcoin maximalist, paid his way on holiday with just Bitcoin in his wallet during a long weekend on Costa Rica’s Pacific coast.

A hotspot for Bitcoin adoption and real-life whale spotting, the towns of Uvita, Dominical and Ojochal are home to Bitcoin Jungle, a Bitcoin-beach-inspired project, as well as a budding community of Bitcoin-friendly merchants. Eugenio documented his entire Bitcoin holiday to the destination on Twitter. He told Cointelegraph, “The only fiat I had to use was filling the tank [of the car] before departing.”

I just had a 100% #Bitcoin vacation in Uvita, Dominical and Ojochal #CostaRica thanks to the work of @BitcoinJungleCR creating a circular economy and supporting many merchants and business. Zero fiat was used, no banks involved, no trusted third parties, just real hard money. pic.twitter.com/YrcQfIumfx
— Eugenio Crypto Disrespecter (@E_moonwatcher) July 18, 2022

Eugenio explained that he wanted to support the adoption and to show that anyone can do the same, in a convenient and fun way, "using Lightning Network seamlessly with no payment processors or banks involved."

“I wanted to be able to pay for my little sister's gelato while I was at the beach, for example.”

Eugenio paid for more than his sister’s ice cream: he paid pizzas, coffees, steaks and even a trip to the market for kombucha with Bitcoin.

Reportedly, merchants asked, “would you like to pay with Lighting or on-chain?” On-chain transactions take on average 10 minutes to confirm, are slow, and sometimes costly. Lightning transactions are near-instant, near-free, and are a “win-win for me and for the merchants,” Eugenio explained.

“It is extremely convenient, Bitcoin is money. You can use it to spend and can use it to save, you can do both in an easy way without the fees and hurdles embedded in the legacy system, plus you can always buy back the sats with the fiat you were going to use in the first place.”

The Lightning Network is quietly catching on, and examples of its adoption slowly spread like roots reaching across the globe. From British families to Senegalese surfers, the appetite for transactions over Lightning means more and more Bitcoin is used on the layer two platforms.

Eugenio shares some advice for those reluctant to use the LN or event to visit Costa Rica. A proud Tico (Costa Rican local), he suggests, “Don't overthink it. The place is stunning, safe, full of nature and adventure. Use the Bitcoin Jungle Business map for guidance and a Lightning Wallet.”

Costa Rica's pacific coast showing places accepting Bitcoin. Source: https://maps.bitcoinjungle.app/

The place is adopting Bitcoin “organically,” and some of the locals have taken pride in accepting Bitcoin, Eugenio told Cointelegraph.

As per the above map, there are a growing number of merchants across Costa Rica accepting Bitcoin “with a smile.” With the summer holidays in full swing, Bitcoin wallets might be on packing lists around the world, alongside passports, sunglasses and sunblock.

Reporting ‘limited progress,’ FATF urges countries to introduce legislation for travel rule

June 30, 2022 Coin Telegraph

Coin Telegraph

“Countries that have not introduced Travel Rule legislation should do so as soon as possible, and FATF jurisdictions should lead by example," said the organization.

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) reported that 11 out of 98 responding jurisdictions have started enforcing its standards on Combating the Financing of Terrorism, or CFT, and Anti-Money Laundering, or AML.

In an update released Thursday on the “Implementation of the FATF Standards on Virtual Assets and Virtual Asset Service Providers,” the FATF reported the “vast majority” of jurisdictions assessed by the organization’s Global Network since June 2021 “still require major or moderate improvement” in AML/CFT compliance in accordance with the travel rule. According to the FATF, countries moving towards implementing these requirements made “limited progress” over the last year, with 29 out of 98 responding jurisdictions reporting passing legislation related to the travel rule, and 11 starting enforcement.

“While around a quarter of responding jurisdictions are now in the process of passing the relevant legislation, around one-third (36 out of 98) have not yet started introducing the Travel Rule,” said the FATF. “This gap leaves VAs and VASPs vulnerable to misuse, and demonstrates the urgent need for jurisdictions to accelerate implementation and enforcement.”

A new FATF report on virtual assets finds only 29 out of 98 jurisdictions have passed the FATF ‘travel rule’ to ensure crypto firms verify who their customers are. FATF members should lead by example & introduce relevant legislation ASAP.

See the report➡️https://t.co/PWbaOMtNfJ pic.twitter.com/hHpALXiIJv
— FATF (@FATFNews) June 30, 2022

The organization added that companies in the private sector had made progress in introducing solutions to support compliance with the travel rule and “taking early steps to ensure interoperability with other solutions.” However, the FATF hinted at the necessity of implementing these solutions quickly, given the “significant threat of ransomware actors misusing VAs to facilitate payments” and funneling illicit funds through Virtual Asset Service Providers, also known as VASPs.

“Countries that have not introduced Travel Rule legislation should do so as soon as possible, and FATF jurisdictions should lead by example by promoting implementation, and by sharing experiences and good practices [...] Rapid implementation by jurisdictions will incentivize progress further.”

Among other developments since 2021 included a rise in the growth of decentralized finance, or DeFi, and nonfungible projects, which the FATF labeled as a “challenging area for implementation” of the travel rule. The organization cited a Chainalysis report released in February that “suggests that threats from criminal misuse continue” with illicit transactions in DeFi, and reached similar conclusions for NFTs potentially being used for “money laundering and wash trading.”

Under FATF guidelines, VASPs operating within certain jurisdictions need to be licensed or registered. The organization reported in an April update that roughly half of assessed jurisdictions in 120 countries had “adequate laws and regulatory structures in place” to assess risks and verify beneficial owners of companies, urging them to prioritize identifying and reporting information on cryptocurrency transactions.

Crypto Stories: YouTuber Paco de la India explains his travels using Bitcoin

June 24, 2022 Coin Telegraph

Adoption

The Bitcoiner had visited eight different countries out of his goal of forty and was in Africa at the time of Cointelegraph’s interview.

A YouTuber started traveling the world to see whether he could survive solely on Bitcoin as a means of payment.

In the latest episode of Cointelegraph’s ‘Crypto Stories’ series, Paco from India explained how he started his journey from the city of Bengaluru and learned from the example of travel pioneers who came before him, including Nellie Bly, who circumnavigated the globe in the late 19th century in less than 73 days. Paco worked a variety of jobs before reading up on Bitcoin (BTC) and made a big decision.

“This is 2021,” said Paco. “I will travel the world by using Bitcoin.”

The YouTuber added:

“When my journey started, I had zero dollars. I sold my furniture, got $200 of Bitcoin, and as soon as I started on day one, the first Bitcoin meetup we had in Bengaluru, one guy came and gave me $200 of Bitcoin [...] My plan is to go to 40 countries in 400 days.”

Paco said he was delayed from his travel plans by the ongoing pandemic — particularly when the Omicron variant hit India. However, he had visited eight different countries and was in Africa at the time of Cointelegraph’s interview.

“I feel Africa needs Bitcoin more than anyone else in the world,” he said. “All the currencies are falling down, the countries are falling down — it’s a big blow, it’s happening. Fix the money, fix the world.”

Madeira ‘embraces’ Bitcoin and how the president met Michael Saylor

May 17, 2022 Coin Telegraph

Bitcoin Community

Why and how the island of Madeira is “adopting” Bitcoin and how the president fell down the Bitcoin rabbit hole.

The tiny Portuguese island of Madeira has “adopted” Bitcoin (BTC) — but what does that mean? The announcement made during the Bitcoin Miami Conference in 2022 has spurned confusion and misinformation.

The President of the Regional Government of Madeira, Miguel Albuquerque, hopped onto the stage in April to announce that he believes in the “future of Bitcoin,” and that he would work to “create a fantastic environment for Bitcoin.” However, the details remained unclear.

Cointelegraph spoke to André Loja, a Madeiran entrepreneur who spearheaded the plan to bring Bitcoin to the archipelago in the Atlantic ocean to find out how Bitcoin is shaping the islands’ development.

The island of Madeira exploded onto the Bitcoin world map on April 7, when Samson Mow proudly announced that Madeira “will be adopting Bitcoin.”

Upon the announcement, news outlets around the world reported that Madeira had adopted Bitcoin as legal tender. However, this was not the case. Loja explained to Cointelegraph that prior to Samson Mow’s announcement, Loja would have preferred to use the phrasing “Madeira is embracing Bitcoin.”

“We embrace it, we support it. We are not ‘adopting’ Bitcoin because adopting looks like we were making it legal tender when it’s already de facto legal.”

Indeed, in Madeira and across Portugal — 1,000 km northeast of the island — there is zero tax on Bitcoin capital gains. That means any disposal, spending, or use of Bitcoin does not need to be declared to tax authorities by the island’s 250,000 people.

Loja orange-pilled the president of Madeira just a few weeks prior to the conference, sharing his vision for Bitcoin as not only a means to attract foreign investment, but to “protect my island from the fiat system.”

By happenstance, Albuquerque came to visit Loja’s coworking space — one of the few places that accept Bitcoin in Madeira — and Loja jumped at the opportunity to share his passion for Bitcoin. Madeira was kneecapped by the COVID-19 pandemic as critical tourism revenue fell off a cliff. Loja, therefore, presented a Bitcoin future to the president as a means to diversify and restructure Madeira’s economy, among other advantages.

Albuquerque was reportedly open to the idea, so Loja quickly sought the help of Bitcoiners around the world, including Daniel Prince, a renowned Bitcoin podcaster; Jeff Booth, the author of The Price of Tomorrow, and even Michael Saylor, CEO of Microstrategy.

Within weeks, the Bitcoiner all-star team had contacted the organizers of Bitcoin Miami 2022 to organize the president’s appearance on stage. Ultimately, having the head of state of an autonomous region endorse Bitcoin was an opportunity too big to miss.

Upon landing in Miami, Loja and Albuquerque were invited to Saylor’s flashy Miami villa, “with the yachts and everything,” Loja jokes. While Loja had already orange-pilled the president, the conversation with Saylor was on another level:

“Michael Saylor sat down with president Albuquerque and well […] It was more like he sat down with his head!”

Saylor told Albuquerque that “you need to focus on Bitcoin. Everything else is garbage.” A conversation the president is unlikely to forget, the seminar was sufficient preparation for him to step on stage in front of 25,000 Bitcoin enthusiasts.

Loja explained that the announcement that Madeira is adopting Bitcoin would “kickstart an intention” for Madeira to become an island in which Bitcoin prospers alongside the people. For Loja, who has already translated popular Bitcoin books into Portuguese, “It starts with education: the most important thing.”

*Loja (far right), President Albuquerque (center with book) and Knut Svanholm (far left) in Madeira in May 2022. Source: Loja*

Indeed, Loja cut his teeth during the bear market of 2018. A passionate educator, Loja works closely with other educators in the space, such as Knut Svanholm, author of Bitcoin: Everything Divided by 21 Million, to teach the principles of sound money:

"I have a lot of ideas, from kindergarten to schools to adults workshops — and to bring people from outside the island. The association will have the best people as consultants.”

To this end, Loja is founding the Sound Money Foundation, a Bitcoin education center in Madeira. The center has support from Samson Mow and Jeff Booth, among others, and seeks to help locals to better understand cryptocurrency from a young age.

Accompanying the education drive and the focus on improving "financial literacy," Loja's hometown also lures Bitcoin companies with attractive fiscal incentives. At the International Business Center, companies pay just 5% business tax, a highly competitive rate. Portugal was already a budding hub for individual Bitcoiners, but companies could now reap benefits

Further down the road, Loja plans for the autonomous government of Madeira to mine Bitcoin with leftover renewable energy — as the island has abundant wind and sunlight — and even carry out “a multi-signature wallet for the government to work with Bitcoin financially.”

*Madeira's international business center. Source: ibc-madeira.com*

As a result, the government would take full custody of the Bitcoin it mines by taking control of the private keys. Loja highlighted that the electrical power grid is a standalone “public company,” so any Bitcoin mined by the grid would go into government multi-sig wallets.

In essence, Madeira's approach to Bitcoin goes above and beyond the lauded legal tender status. From public sector Bitcoin mining to education to state-run multi-sig wallets to having Michael Saylor on speed dial, the island is slowly steering towards a Bitcoin future.

Unsurprisingly, Loja's holistic approach to the island "embracing" Bitcoin has a low time preference.

Travel

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