Ferrari said on Wednesday it would extend its scheme to accept payments in cryptocurrency for its luxury sports cars to its European dealership network from the end of this month, after starting in the US last year.
The Italian company said on Wednesday it would extend the scheme to other dealers in its global network where cryptocurrencies were legally accepted by the end of 2024.
Though most blue-chip companies have steered clear of crypto as the volatility of bitcoin and other tokens make them impractical for commerce, Ferrari started last year to accept payments in cryptocurrency in the US to meet requests from its wealthy customers.
“The entry into the European market follows the successful launch of the alternative payment system in the US less than a year ago to support dealers in better addressing the evolving needs of its clients,” the company said.
It said most of its dealers in the region had already adopted, or were adopting, the new payment system.
Patchy regulation and high energy use have also so far prevented the spread of crypto as a means of payment. Countries where cryptocurrencies are restricted include China.
In the US, Ferrari had turned to BitPay, one of the biggest cryptocurrency payment processors, and allowed transactions in bitcoin, ether and leading stable coin USDC.
BitPay immediately turns cryptocurrency payments into traditional currency on behalf of Ferrari’s dealers, protecting them from price swings and excluding fees or surcharges for clients.
On Wednesday, Ferrari did not provide details on whether it would use other payment processors in Europe and in other regions.
Reuters
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