Coca-Cola vending machines operated by Coca-Cola Amatil in Australia New Zealand will take bitcoin payments using a smart wallet, with plans to target the U.S. The Coke bottler recently signed an agreement with Centrapay, a digital asset integrator, to allow customers to use integrator's Sylo Smart Wallet for making payments, according to a press release.

Coca-Cola Amatil is the largest bottler and distributor in Asia Pacific, supporting 140 brands and 270 million consumers, and has established a presence in North America and will target the U.S. market.

In addition to improving operational efficiency, transacting with digital assets also reduces how much people need to touch the vending machine, a concern during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Amatil's customers can use their Sylo Smart Wallet at any one of Coca-Cola's 2000-plus vending machines with a QR code payment sticker. These are located across New Zealand and Australia and will accept payments in cryptocurrency or other digital assets with a scan of a phone's camera. Customers only need to touch the vending machine once to take their purchase.

Centrapay CEO, Jerome Faury, said that integration complexity and poor user experiences are barriers to adoption of Web 3 technology, such as digital identity and assets.

"We have solved both these issues," Faury said in the press release. "Centrapay is pioneering the way to enable this new internet of value and bring its benefits to both consumers and merchants. And it comes with the added benefit of reducing physical contact and addressing the hygiene concerns we've all become acutely aware of due to COVID-19."

For an update on how the coronavirus pandemic has affected convenience services, click here.
 

Copyright © 2020 Networld Media. All rights reserved., source Industry News