[NEWS] Mercari starts offering Bitcoin payment feature

Mercari subsidiary Mercoin, which provides cryptocurrency and blockchain services, announced on the 15th that it will offer a feature that allows users to pay with Bitcoin (BTC) when purchasing items on the Mercari app.

Bitcoin has been added to the payment options when purchasing items on the Mercari app as before. Until now, users could purchase Bitcoin with the proceeds from selling unwanted items on Mercari, or sell Bitcoin and return it to their Merpay balance.

Mercoin CEO Keita Nakamura explained at a press conference, "We think it is important to show the utility of Bitcoin, from 'holding' to 'using' it." He added, "Being able to provide a new purchasing experience that matches the price movements of Bitcoin will be a big step in value exchange using cryptocurrency. It has the potential to be used worldwide, and we will challenge ourselves to achieve that goal."

In the future, the company will focus on the element of "discovery" and will continue to work to get people to pay attention to the holding and use of not only Bitcoin, but also altcoins and other digital assets.

In particular, for altcoins, they will target brands that can provide easy-to-understand utility with light users in mind. In addition, they will also consider providing a savings service.

▶︎Image of Bitcoin payment

Use of Mercari by people with no experience in cryptocurrency trading is expanding

Mercari launched its service in March last year. In just seven months, the number of users has exceeded 1 million, attracting a lot of attention. In particular, about 80% of users of Mercari's Bitcoin trading service are people with no experience in cryptocurrency trading, which is becoming a factor for beginners to enter the market.

In addition, in the "Survey on Cryptocurrency in 2023" released by MMD Research Institute, operated by MMD Labo, in December last year, it was ranked first in Japan for cryptocurrency services that began to be used in 2023.

Reference: Announcement
Image: Iolite Editorial Department

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