South African retailer Pick n Pay now accepts payments via BTC across all of its stores – Africa

Pick n Pay, one of South Africa's leading retailers, is now reportedly accepting Bitcoin as payment in all of its stores across the country. Using the Bitcoin Lightning network, Pick n Pay customers can now purchase items such as groceries, airtime and electricity tokens.

Use Bitcoin for everyday shopping

Just months after it began accepting Bitcoin payments at select outlets, South African retailer Pick n Pay (PNP) is now reportedly accepting Bitcoin at its more than 1,500 stores across the country. PNP customers can now reportedly purchase groceries, airtime, and electricity via the Bitcoin Lightning network.

As reported from Bitcoin.com News in November 2022, the South African retail giant's acceptance of Bitcoin as a payment method was made possible by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority's (FSCA) decision to declare crypto a Financial product. Previously, PNP said it had experimented with this Bitcoin Payments at one of its company cafeterias in 2017. Although the experiments were successful, the retailer said that using the technology did not appear to be cost-effective at the time.

BREAKING: 🇿🇦 One of South Africa's largest retailers, Pick n Pay, is now officially accepting #Bitcoin and lightning payments in ALL of its 1,500+ stores 🙌

– Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) February 1, 2023

Reacting to the announcement, Crypto QR, a South Africa-based crypto payments company, welcomed PNP's move to allow residents to use Bitcoin for everyday purchases.

"Good news folks! Crypto QR is now active in all Pick-n-Pay stores across South Africa, including PnP Express and clothing stores! You can also buy airtime and electricity, plane and bus tickets and pay your municipal bills with Bitcoin at the checkout," Crypto QR said in a tweet.

The Legitimate Use of Bitcoin in a Business

Meanwhile, some Twitter users have praised PNP for taking a step that will help those who want to promote the use and adoption of Bitcoin as an alternative payment method. One user, Kelly Yanes, said this was the first time she had “seen the legitimate use of Bitcoin in person in a public place and in a store.”

Until Bitcoin stabilizes in price so buying things is a terrible idea. Seconds after you buy something, it can go up and you've overpaid a ton

— NoFilterNoFluff (@7th_Rule) February 2, 2023

However, some other users were quick to point out the downsides of using the crypto asset for everyday purchases.

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Terence Zimwara

Terence Zimwara is an award-winning journalist, author and writer from Zimbabwe. He has written extensively about the economic struggles of some African countries, as well as how digital currencies can provide an escape route for Africans.

Photo credit: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons, Editorial image rights: Sunshine Seeds / Shutterstock.com