Pick n Pay Retailers Now Accepting Bitcoin Payments in 1.628 Stores

Pick n Pay retailers are now accepting payments in crypto. (photo: twitter @picknpay)

JAKARTA – South African retailer Pick n Pay is now accepting Bitcoin in all of its 1.628 stores after a three-month trial phase in 39 locations.

As part of its nationwide rollout, store customers will be able to pay for goods using cryptocurrency via a smartphone app or by scanning a QR code and receiving the South African rand conversion rate at checkout.

Good news, everyone! CryptoQR is now active at all Pick-n-Pay stores across South Africa, including PnP express and clothing shops! You can also buy Airtime and Electricity, Plane and Bus tickets, and pay your municipal bills with #Bitcoin at the till! pic.twitter.com/3hVhgIJdTb

— CryptoQR 🇿🇦⚡️ (@CryptoConverted) February 1, 2023

To pay with BTC, customers need a Bitcoin Lightning Wallet and CryptoQR scanning app from CryptoConvert, which is linked to the Bitcoin Lightning Wallet. The payment process requires the user to scan the item's QR code via the CryptoQR app and then proceed to Lightning Wallet to confirm the rate and complete the transaction.

Twitter users share their experiences using Bitcoin to pay for everyday items at Pick n Pay stores:

The move comes after the country's financial regulator, the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA), amended its financial advisory law in October 2022 to classify crypto assets as financial products, bringing cryptocurrencies under regulation for the first time in South Africa and allowing financial service providers to offer crypto assets both domestically and internationally.

The retailer revealed plans to roll out crypto payments nationwide in November, after years of trialling the service in select stores. The first experiments with cryptocurrencies occurred in 2017, when companies started accepting Bitcoin as a form of payment in Cape Town, but transaction fees and waiting times hindered the process.

During its pilot program, Pick n Pay partnered with Electrum and CryptoConvert to allow customers to pay via the Bitcoin Lightning Network, a second layer added to the Bitcoin blockchain that allows off-chain transactions.

Among African countries, South Africa seems to be making great progress in adopting cryptocurrencies. South Africa ranks 30th globally in terms of cryptocurrency adoption according to the 2022 Global Chainalysis Crypto Adoption Index. It is estimated that around 10% to 13% of the population of South Africa now own crypto assets.