Can You Pay For Your Electric Car With Cryptocurrencies?
If you're considering purchasing an electric car, you may be wondering whether you can pay for it with cryptocurrencies. While it is possible, the majority of dealerships do not accept cryptocurrencies. At non-accepting dealerships, you can exchange your cryptocurrency for cash. It's important to consider the benefits and drawbacks of using cryptocurrencies when buying a car.
Buying a car with cryptocurrencies
The concept of purchasing an electric car with cryptocurrency has many benefits, but the high transaction costs may turn you off. For instance, the average new car costs $46,000, and a 2.5% transaction fee would equal $1,150. Additionally, car dealers will generally prefer cash or traditional financing, so it's probably not worth it to convert all of your cash to crypto.
While purchasing a car with Bitcoin is not difficult, the biggest hurdle is finding a seller willing to accept it. In most cases, the transaction works much like buying a normal used car - buyers transfer funds to a private seller and transfer ownership as per normal.
EV charging stations will accept cryptocurrencies
Soon, EV owners in Europe will be able to pay at charging stations using cryptocurrencies. Two companies have joined forces to enable this. HIPS payment group Ltd, an Irish ecommerce and mobile payments company, and Vourity, a Swedish payment company, are working on the implementation. Both companies are planning to integrate crypto payments into EV charging stations in the next three years. The companies are still working out which cryptos will be supported.
The companies are planning to launch the service in November 2021. They plan to integrate it with other EV charging stations. The news is a boon to cryptocurrency enthusiasts, as it demonstrates that the digital asset is gaining acceptance in the mainstream.
Tesla will accept Bitcoin as payment
Tesla will start accepting Bitcoin as payment for its electric cars later this year. The company will operate its own bitcoin nodes, allowing customers to pay for their electric cars with the cryptocurrency directly. This way, it avoids the risk of cryptocurrency being spent twice. Customers can also request refunds in bitcoin, in addition to U.S. dollars.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced that the company will start accepting Bitcoin as a payment mode for its electric cars. After the announcement, the bitcoin value plummeted 5% to $51,847, and the stock of the electric carmaker fell nearly four percent. However, Musk said that Tesla is now looking into other cryptocurrency types that require less energy to process.
Edmark Toyota accepts cryptocurrencies
In addition to accepting cryptocurrencies as payment for cars, some car dealers are accepting them as well. Edmark Toyota is one of those dealerships. The company is located in Nampa, Idaho, and it accepts several different forms of virtual currency. In addition, Bob Moore Auto, a chain of 16 dealerships in Oklahoma, accepts both bitcoin and Ethereum. The company also offers a fly-and-buy program that chauffeurs buyers from the airport to the dealership for a test drive.
Crypto payments are also accepted at the Subaru dealership in Oklahoma City, where the company is partnered with Aliant Payments. The service accepts Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin.
Prestman Auto accepts cryptocurrencies
Prestman Auto is one of the few dealerships in the country that accepts cryptocurrency payments for electric cars. In a recent article, author David Muller outlined the advantages of using crypto payments for car purchases, and noted that cryptocurrencies could eventually replace traditional currencies in the auto industry. Currently, only a handful of dealerships accept crypto, and they usually only accept Bitcoin, but more are coming on board.
The company has been accepting cryptocurrencies for the past year. Last August, it began accepting BitPay payments from customers. By February, it had mechanics on staff to process cryptocurrency payments. The company uses the BitPay app to convert cryptocurrency into U.S. dollars within 24 to 48 hours. The company does not hold the cryptocurrencies on its balance sheet, and has said it plans to accept 12 forms of cryptocurrency in its 23 dealerships in three states.