The famous luxury carmaker Ferrari is now accepting cryptocurrency payments for its vehicles in the United States (US) and plans to do the same in Europe.
This decision comes in response to requests from wealthy customers who have invested in cryptocurrencies.
While many big companies have avoided cryptocurrencies due to their unpredictable value, Ferrari is open to trying them out.
Tesla briefly accepted Bitcoin as payment but stopped because of environmental concerns linked to Bitcoin's energy usage.
Ferrari's Chief Marketing and Commercial Officer Enrico Galliera mentioned that cryptocurrencies have been working on reducing their environmental impact.
Ferrari is committed to becoming carbon-neutral by 2030 across its operations.
The luxury car company's choice to embrace cryptocurrencies is driven by high demand from both the market and its dealers.
Some of their customers are young investors who've made money with cryptocurrencies, while others are traditional investors looking to diversify their investments.
Bitcoin, the most popular cryptocurrency, is still criticized for using a lot of energy to operate.
While some cryptocurrencies like Ethereum have become more energy-efficient, Bitcoin still faces these concerns.
Ferrari hasn't said how many cars it expects to sell using cryptocurrencies, but they want to test the waters in this new market.
Galliera believes this move could help them connect with people who might not typically buy a Ferrari but can now afford one.
For now, Ferrari is teaming up with BitPay, a major cryptocurrency payment processor, to manage crypto transactions in the US.
They're accepting payments in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and stable cryptocurrency USDC.
In early 2023, they plan to expand this payment option to Europe and then to other places where cryptocurrencies are legally accepted.
BitPay will turn cryptocurrency payments into regular money for Ferrari's dealers to protect them from price changes.
They'll also make sure the virtual currencies come from legitimate sources and aren't tied to illegal activities or tax evasion.
Ferrari's dealers in the US are already joining this cryptocurrency payment program, and more are expected to follow soon.
