Thu, Oct 6th 2022
Businesses in Lugano – such as McDonald’s, art galleries, and other local companies – this week began accepting bitcoin as part of an initiative called Plan ₿. The enterprise is intended to scale bitcoin and stablecoin adoption across the city, from parking tickets to taxes.
Lugano is a Swiss city in the southern canton of Ticino.
Plan B
Cryptocurrency stablecoin, Tether, has partnered with the city to create an official payment token for Lugano, known as LVGA. One hundred LVGA points is equal to CHF 1, but these LVGA tokens can only be spent within the MyLugano circuit of businesses that have agreed to use cryptocurrency. Plan ₿ projects that more than 2,500 local merchants will accept bitcoin by the end of the year.
The rollout began this week in preparation of the city hosting the Bitcoin World Forum, a cryptocurrency conference taking place from October 28-29.
“Earlier this year, Lugano and Tether signed a memorandum of understanding to launch a strategic collaboration through several initiatives, including to help local businesses integrate their existing payment services with the permitted stablecoins and Bitcoin,” Tether Chief Technology Officer Paolo Ardoino said in a statement.
“We have been working together to ensure the technological infrastructure is in place to support this and today we watch all of that hard work come to fruition,” he added.
Tether’s aim is to transform Lugano into a major European blockchain hub and then use the city as an example of its capabilities. Long-term, Plan ₿ want to extend cryptocurrency payments into public services, student tuition, and even city taxes. Tether has created a multimillion-dollar fund to support blockchain startups in Lugano and partner with local research and education institution, with the hope to educate younger Lugano residents on cryptocurrency.
Switzerland is no stranger to crypto
Switzerland has already been a global leader in blockchain technology adoption for years – Lugano’s citywide transformation is just another way the country is staying on the forefront of cryptocurrency. The Canton of Zug, which has also been called “Crypto Valley,” is home to nearly half of the 960 crypto startups in the country; although, many are presumed to be shell corporations.
In September 2022 alone, the Swiss Stock Exchange saw improved trading results with volumes up to CHF 955.7 billion, up from August’s combined nominal value of CHF 78.3 billion. September 16 marked the highest turnover on a single trading day which saw securities worth CHF 10.0 billion changing hands. The highest number of trades, 319,246, happened on September 28.
The argument for adopting a global cryptocurrency may very much ride on whether Lugano succeeds or fails in this endeavor.
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