thecoinrepublic.com
Unocoin – considered the oldest cryptocurrency exchange in India – is making some moves recently as it now allows its users to purchase consumer goods with bitcoin (BTC). Several crypto payment methods are being used as of late, though it is said that this is the first major one of its kind in the country.
Unocoin users can now buy stuff with their bitcoin
Unocoin has recently announced that they are now allowing their users to buy stuff using their bitcoin. Reports suggest that registered users of the cryptocurrency exchange who have completed the know-your-customer processes will be enabled to buy vouchers that range in value from 100 rupees ($1.35) to 5,000 rupees ($67.37). Further, the value of the vouchers varies according to the brand as this was confirmed by Unocoin’s CEO and co-founder Sathvik Vishwanath.
How to purchase
Users will be able to buy vouchers for brands in segments that include clothing, fashion, travel, lifestyle, accessories, and even hotel accommodations. Big-name brands like Domino’s Pizza, Himalaya – a pharmaceutical and healthcare company, jewelry brand Joyalukkas, Baskin Robbin’s ice cream, the café chain of Café Coffee Day, and the kitchen appliance brand Prestige were just some of the notable brands.
To purchase, eligible Unocoin users will just have to log in to either the exchange’s website or app, choose the value of the vouchers they opted to purchase and pay the equivalent in bitcoin. It’s worth mentioning that the value of the said vouchers is updated according to BTC’s market price during checkout. Folks who bought these vouchers can then redeem them on either the merchant’s official website or on their physical stores.
Unocoin’s goal
That said, Unocoin is working to bring both bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies closer to their aim – to be able to serve as modes of payment. These digital assets were initially devised to push traditional payment tools like fiat currencies, credit cards, and checks on the sidelines. Sadly, though, reaching that goal may well seem to be pretty much sluggish considering that the plethora of cryptocurrencies like bitcoin is extremely volatile. This is one of the main reasons why most merchants veer away to accept payments of such nature.
Unocoin is said to alter all that as a customer buys a voucher, there will be a deduction in bitcoin from the user’s account and will be getting a voucher code that they can use.
This announcement from the crypto exchange came during bitcoin’s recovery from a flurry of heavy losses. It can be recalled that BTC reached its all-time high in mid-April of this year amounting to $64,000 per coin. As mentioned, bitcoin’s price took a series of dips, and eventually hovered over the $30,000 range. As of writing, bitcoin’s price sits at $47,614.
Bulls on parade
In line with the recent bitcoin price rally, Wazir X COO Siddarth Menon explained that bitcoin managed to close above the 200-day moving average which according to him is indicative that the bulls are back. He also pointed out that the on-chain analysis also tells that the dip has been bought by long-term holders adding they are not seeing any profit booking like what they saw in 2018 after the top of $19,600 on bitcoin.