Spanish Telecom Giant Telefonica Embraces Bitcoin Payments

One of the largest telephone operators and mobile network providers in Spain – Telefonica – partnered with the crypto exchange Bit2Me to allow clients to pay for services in digital assets.

Cryptocurrency adoption seems to be on a high level in the Iberian country. A few months ago, the leading airline company – Vueling – said travelers will be able to purchase flight tickets in bitcoin and other assets from January 2023.

Telefonica Says ‘Yes’ to Crypto

The Madrid-based corporation allowed customers to settle bills in several cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), Circle’s stablecoin USDC, and others on its online marketplace named Tu.

To enable the crypto payments, Telefonica joined forces with the Spanish digital asset platform Bit2Me, which provided the infrastructure and will oversee the transactions.

The news grabbed the attention of the Chief Executive Officer of Binance – Changpeng Zhao (CZ) – since he shared it on his personal Twitter account.

Spain’s largest telecom company now accepts crypto payments.

— CZ ? Binance (@cz_binance) September 30, 2022

It is worth noting that his company recently expanded its presence in the Spanish market. Two months ago, Binance’s subsidiary – Moon Tech Spain – received regulatory approval to register as a Virtual Asset Services Provider (VASP) in the European country.

“MoonTech’s registration in Spain is an acknowledgment of the hard work and commitment of our teams to providing a platform that places users’ protection above all else,” Zhao said back then.

Vueling Also Jumped on the Bandwagon

Another prominent Spanish firm that joined crypto’s ecosystem in the past few months is the Barcelona-based airline Vueling.

In June, it collaborated with BitPay to allow clients to buy tickets in 13 different digital assets, such as Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Litecoin (LTC), Dogecoin (DOGE), Shiba Inu (SHIB), and others.

The move is expected to see the light of day at the beginning of 2023, which would turn Vueling into the first low-cost airline in Europe to embrace cryptocurrencies as a payment method.

BitPay’s Vice President of Marketing – Merrick Theobald – said the Spanish firm “recognizes the potential of cryptocurrencies to transform the airline industry, making payments faster, more secure, and less expensive on a global scale.”