Ferrari has begun to accept crypto as a form of payment for its vehicles as it broadens its appeal to those who had previously made their fortunes within the industry.
According to a report by Reuters on Sunday, enthusiasts in the US will be able to pay using crypto following demand from wealthy customers, Ferrari’s chief marketing and commercial officer Enrico Galliera reportedly said.
Payments are now being accepted in bitcoin (BTC), ether (ETH) and stablecoin USDC. Plans for other payment providers may be used as the company looks to expand the method across various regions.
Prices for the vehicles will not be adjusted if a customer pays using crypto, per the report. Fees and surcharges will also not apply.
Crypto payments company BitPay is being tapped by the luxury car maker to facilitate transactions in the States, with further plans to expand those efforts into Europe next year.
Other regions are also slated for the program, though a timeline or specifics of which locations for the rollout was not provided. Blockworks has reached out to learn more.
“This will help us connect to people who are not necessarily our clients but might afford a Ferrari,” Galliera said.
Auto manufacturers have shied away from offering customers the ability to pay using crypto, citing the asset’s supposed excessive carbon footprint. Ferrari, however, said changes in code, presumably ETH’s switch to proof-of-stake last year, meant that was now less of a concern.
Read more: Proof-of-work vs. proof-of-stake: Which is better?
Others have cited crypto’s fluctuations as a reason for steering clear.
In a bid to avoid the volatility often associated with the asset class, BitPay will instantly convert crypto into fiat on behalf of Ferrari’s dealers, per the report.
“This was one of our main goals. Avoiding both our dealers and us to directly handle cryptocurrencies and being shielded from their wide fluctuations,” the Ferrari executive added.
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Source: https://blockworks.co/news/ferrari-crypto-payments