Venezuela’s largest department store will install blockchain-enabled cash registers in its 49 retail outlets.
The megastore operator Traki announced August 22, it will integrate Singapore-based Pundi X’s point-of-sale device, XPOS, to offer a cryptocurrency payment rail for shoppers.
Already available in 30 countries, Pundi aims to sell 100,000 XPOS devices by 2021. This is part of the firm’s plan to introduce cryptocurrencies for everyday use, through an ecosystem of financial products like its XPASS crypto debit cards and Xwallet.
“We made the XPOS with the mission of creating real-life use cases for blockchain technology, and this couldn’t be better represented than Traki shoppers paying for their daily needs with cryptocurrency,” said Pundi X CEO, Zac Cheah.
Cheah continued to say that Traki has been an early adopter of blockchain technology in Venezuela.
“At Traki, we aspire to offer the most convenient options for our customers, and cryptocurrency has proven to be an effective payment solution,” said Michael Gomez, Chief of Crypto Assets department of Traki. Of Pundi’s near-300,000 wallet users, approximately one-tenth are based in Venezuela.
The XPOS payments system supports payments in a range of cryptocurrencies including BTC, ETH, Binance’s BNB stablecoin, as well as Pundi X’s own NPXS and NPXSXEM tokens.
A period of hyperinflation and lack of liquidity has seen many Venezuelans adopt cryptocurrency as a store of value and payment option. Last year, President Nicolas Marduro launched the petro dollar cryptocurrency, pegged to the South American nation’s vast oil reserves, as a means to sidestep economic sanctions. Maduro recently ordered banks and state-owned companies to use the token.
Bitcoin, map photo via Shutterstock