From next week customers using The Post Office’s EasyID app will be able to buy cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin.

The mobile app, while helps users to securely verify their age and identity in order to gain access to online services, can be used to make purchases on Swarm Markets, a decentralised cryptocurrency exchange.

With a few clicks on their phones customers will be able to purchase crypto vouchers which will be redeemable as Bitcoin or Ethereum.

Co-founder of Swarm Markets, Philipp Pieper, said, “Until now, people have been locked out of DeFi because there hasn’t been a secure, trusted and regulated platform for them to use.

“By making it easy and safe to buy real Bitcoin and Ethereum, more people now have the option to get started in crypto and enjoy the benefits of DeFi – and not just those who understand crypto jargon,” he added.

A spokesperson for The Post Office said, “access to products and services are increasingly moving online and we’ve responded to this shift by launching our free to use app, Post Office EasyID, allowing people to build their own secure digital identity on their smartphone and enabling them to easily control and prove who they are to whichever business they want to interact with.”

The news comes after cryptocurrencies took a giant step towards mass adoption earlier this week with El Salvador making Bitcoin legal tender on Tuesday.

The move raised eyebrows as a result of Bitcoin’s notoriously volatile price movements, with the currency losing 50 per cent of its value between April and May this year.

Swarm Markets claims to be the world’s first regulated Decentralized Finance (DEFI) protocol and has been licensed by BaFin, Germany’s financial watchdog. The price of Swarm Coin, the exchange’s native token, has jumped 4.25 per cent in the past 24 hours.

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