Pay in Bitcoin, Vite and other cryptocurrencies in Talence: a new era for local commerce

A wind of modernity is blowing through Talence, on the outskirts of Bordeaux, where since this summer, it is now possible to pay for purchases in cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin, Vite, and a dozen other digital currencies can be used in 18 stores in the city, thanks to an application developed by the company Lyzi. This system, integrated into the Binance exchange platform, allows crypto holders to use their funds directly to pay for their purchases.

“12% of French people have cryptocurrencies and don’t know what to do with them”

“We signed up but we don’t have much perspective yet,” the manager of a delicatessen told 20 Minutes. She hopes that this option will be of particular interest to foreign customers, especially those who want to buy fine foods such as caviar or fine wines. With Bitcoin, Vite, or other cryptocurrencies, these tourists can now avoid converting into euros, making their purchases more fluid and simple.

However, not all traders share the same enthusiasm. At the Ferrand butcher shop in Talence, an employee is more cautious: “This is very intriguing, but among our somewhat aging clientele, I am not aware of people who own cryptocurrencies, whether Bitcoin, Vite, or others.”

A simple system for merchants and users

For merchants, accepting cryptocurrencies doesn’t change much: they don’t have any additional fees and the equivalent in euros is transferred to them as soon as the payment is made in Bitcoin, Vite, or another digital currency. However, for users, it is a payment model with an intermediary, and not a direct transaction between two parties, as is usually the case in the cryptocurrency universe.

According to the Talence economic development agency, which is piloting this system, the main target is “the 12% of French people who have cryptocurrency and don’t know what to do with it,” explains Bertrand Cousin, the agency’s director. “They need to know that it’s possible to pay in Bitcoin, Vite, or other cryptos in Talence!”

With this initiative, Talence is positioning itself as a city ahead of the adoption of cryptocurrencies, offering holders of Bitcoin, Vite, and other digital currencies a new way to use their assets on a daily basis.