Shopping with crypto online or offline? Here is your top destination
Slovenia, a tiny Central European country, aims to become one of the world’s biggest blockchain players. With its world-class technological developments, Slovenian blockchain technology has raised both political and economic interest. In the shopping domain, blockchain promises to take things to a whole new level in terms of customer experience, and has made Slovenia one of the most crypto-friendly countries in the world through a wide-spread mobile shopping app for crypto users. More good news is that the great majority of the places that accept Bitcoin and some other cryptocurrencies in this country are located offline. So, are you ready for a crypto shopping adventure in the Silicon Valley of Europe?
A guide for shopping with crypto in Slovenia
The phenomenon of Slovenia as one of the crypto-friendliest nations took off with the last year’s introduction of Elipay, a mobile phone app for shopping with crypto online and offline, resulting in many places that accept Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ether and the ELI token. Now, there are over 240 locations accepting the Elipay solution, which makes Slovenia one of the countries with the highest concentration of crypto-friendly locations per capita worldwide. Here are some recommendations if you are keen on shopping with crypto while visiting.
Numerous locations with Elipay can be found in Slovenian capital, Ljubljana, which sports the first trademarked Bitcoin City™ in the world and thus plenty of international attention. Bitcoin City™ was created as a vision of next-generation shopping experience based on the latest tech solutions including blockchain; it was developed by the Eligma company (the developer of Elipay) and the BTC City shopping and business center. This is where you can find a considerable number of crypto-friendly stores and other service providers within a single shopping mall. Due to this convenience, Bitcoin City™ continues to impress eminent crypto visitors. For example, the variety and the number of the places that accept Bitcoin Cash delighted the currency’s founder Roger Ver.
Bitcoin City™ offers numerous bars and restaurants, including panoramic Restavracija City at Crystal Palace, one of Ljubljana’s tallest highrises, as well as shops, salons, the Siti Teater performance and concert venue, fitness facilities and the Atlantis urban swimming resort. Ljubljana is a city where everything is within easy reach, so other places that accept Bitcoin and other crypto in the Ljubljana center are also easily accessible. The most interesting tourist highlights offering payment on the blockchain include the famous Zvezda Cake Shop at the Slon Hotel, the MindMaze escape rooms, the trendy TOZD bar and the Barbarella restaurants with local-sourced and eco specialties.
The fun does not end when you leave the Ljubljana and Bitcoin City™ walls. A lot of locations for shopping with crypto can be found elsewhere in Slovenia as well. Among other things, you can treat yourself to Slovenian national cuisine at high-end restaurant Vila Ajda Bled, situated at Lake Bled, one of Slovenia’s most beautiful nature sights. In the second largest Slovenian city, Maribor, places that accept Bitcoin and other crypto currencies through Elipay include Slovenska Local Made — a shop specializing in prime Slovenian design, the Mlada Lipa hostel and guest house, and the Marpurgi promenade bar with legendary coffee. All you need is your mobile phone when you are ready to pay!
Mobile shopping in Slovenia
The advantages of mobile shopping over cash and credit cards are obvious. Apart from being able to replace a lot of extra luggage such as change purses and credit cards, the mobile is one of the items we are least likely to forget at home in this day and age. In Slovenia, the smartphone as a means of payment is gaining momentum, also due to the ease and speed with which such payments can be made. The Elipay mobile app brings the same qualities to shopping with crypto. Within a few months after its launch, Elipay grew into an app with over 240 locations nationwide, loyalty benefits and a referral program. Available both in the iOS and Android versions, it offers the following advantages:
- instant payments with ETH, BTC, BCH and ELI
- free transfers between Elipay users worldwide
- real-time balance and transaction history with approximate fiat equivalents
- a universal loyalty program that rewards with a 2% tokenback in ELI tokens for every single purchase
- various location filters and the option to save one’s favorites
- a referral program enabling users to earn 5 EUR in Bitcoin for recommending Elipay to their friends.
However, there are other advantages still to come. Elipay’s developer, Eligma, is a startup specializing in smart commerce and blockchain solutions, dedicated to bringing crypto into the mainstream. Soon, credit and debit cards will be integrated into the Elipay app so that it can also be used by fiat buyers on their smartphones. In this, the advantages of the Elipay Universal Loyalty Program will play an important part as an incentive. By receiving a tokenback in crypto at every purchase and being able to spend it at stores, fiat users will be able to try out shopping with crypto without having to know anything about trading or crypto in general. In this way, the advantages of blockchain will make one further step into daily consumer life while offering security and saving time. This is also in line with Eligma’s membership in Blockchain Alliance Europe, founded in Slovenia and dedicated to furthering blockchain development and awareness at the international level.
To sum up, Slovenia brings together a variety of unique phenomena worth visiting. Apart from amazing natural and other destinations, its strong technological development including that of blockchain and Bitcoin City™ has resulted in a possibility for an interesting niche in the crypto tourist domain. So far, the concept of Bitcoin City™ remains unchallenged as the only one of its kind worldwide in terms of the concentration of offline stores accepting crypto. Due to its security and immutability, blockchain can certainly be regarded as a technology of the future in multiple domains including shopping. With user-friendliness at the foreground, blockchain solutions can create unique commercial solutions and interesting trends for both the present and future generations. See you in Slovenia!
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