Austrian telecom provider bets on crypto

One of the biggest mobile telecom providers in Austria is going to accept cryptocurrency payments in a couple of its stores. Telecom company A1 is betting strongly on the rise of digital money, including cryptocurrencies. According to the Austrian tech website Futurezone the telecom company will accept Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dash, Ethereum, XRP and Stellar in its stores.

With 5.1 million mobile phone connections and 2.1 landlines A1 is one of the biggest Austria. Alongside cryptocurrencies the company will also start accepting payments using Alipay and WeChat Pay, mainly to appeal to Asian tourists.

Markus Schreiber, business marketing at A1, is strongly in favor of crypto payments. "Cash is a discontinued model", he was quoted by the Austrian tech website. A1 will be testing digital payment models in a select number of shops for the coming months.

A1 is not the first telecom company to jump into the blockchain and cryptocurrency space. In India one of the major telecom companies is using blockchain technology to battle the fight against spam calls. America-based telecom company Verizon wants to build a blockchain-powered payment system, while blockchain startup Pundi Labs is working on a phone that's completely powered by blockchain technology and even transmits its phone calls over blockchain. This phone is called the XPhone, and it has already been tested.