Honduras’ tourist region begins accepting Bitcoin payments

Santa Lucía in Honduras begins accepting Bitcoin payments.

The Santa Lucía municipality in Honduras has integrated payments in the first cryptocurrency to attract tourists from around the world. This is reported by Reuters.

“This will open up more opportunities and attract more people who want to use this currency,” said César Andino, manager of the Los Robles mall.

According to Macrotrends, in 2019 the country’s tourism revenue was $556 million, and in 2020 it fell to $189 million. Now visitors to Santa Lucía will be able to pay for goods with Bitcoin, the US dollar, or the Honduran lempira.

Initially, the Bitcoin Valley initiative was rolled out to 60 enterprises for pilot testing. In the future, more entrepreneurs and districts are planned to participate.

The project was developed jointly by the Technological University of Honduras, the Santa Lucía municipality, the Coincaex cryptocurrency consortium, and Blockchain Honduras.

“To counter volatility, Bitcoin Valley will allow merchants to receive instant payments in the local currency,” explained Leonardo Paguada, founder of Blockchain Honduras.

Earlier, the Italian fashion house Gucci and premium brand Balenciaga announced accepting Bitcoin payments in their US boutiques. A similar move was announced by one of the world’s largest airlines, Emirates Airlines.

In September 2021, the government of El Salvador legalized Bitcoin. The country has 2,381 BTC on its balance sheet (about $55 million). Journalists estimate that the cryptocurrency is worth approximately 50% less than the purchase price.

According to the study, 84.8% of merchants see Bitcoin payments as a means of attracting customers.

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