France pilots in-store crypto payments as Binance partners with Ingenico

A new partnership between Binance and Ingenico allows in-store payments in France via Binance Pay.

Mainstream crypto and crypto-based services adoption continues, with more companies bridging traditional financial (TradFi) solutions with decentralized financial (DeFi) solutions.

In an announcement on Feb. 22, a new pilot program launched between the crypto exchange, Binance and credit card service company Ingenico, allows in-store crypto payments via Binance Pay. Currently, the initial test of this offering is only available on Ingenico Axium payment terminals in France.

According to the announcement, the program accepts more than 50 cryptocurrencies. Initially, merchants will be paid in cryptocurrency; however, a crypto-to-fiat solution allowing merchants to receive fiat payments is set to pilot in Q2 of 2023.

The France pilot is going live with two merchants, Le Carlie and Miss Opéra, in the hospitality and retail sectors.

Additional European countries, where Binance is an approved crypto operator, are next on the list for service expansion. Binance is approved to operate in France, Italy, Lithuania, Spain, Cyprus, Poland and Sweden.

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Typically, in-store devices require some form of integration to begin utilizing cryptocurrencies. However, the new solution claims to be an “all-in-one” device, making onboarding easier for merchants and consumers.

Jonathan Lim, head of Binance Pay and Binance Card, called the all-in-one device a “new way to approach the market” and said it will “accelerate access to consumers.”

Over the last year, Binance has worked on various payment solutions worldwide. It recently partnered with Mastercard to launch a prepaid crypto card in Brazil after successfully launching it in Argentina in August 2022.

Other companies have also tried bridging the gap between Web2 and Web3 payment systems. On Feb. 10, Bit2Me announced a partnership with Mastercard to launch a debit card that offers crypto cashback.