North Dakota’s Williston city has partnered with crypto payment firm BitPay to start accepting cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) as payment for utility bills.
Hercules Cummings, finance director for the City of Williston, said:
“We have partnered with BitPay, the largest virtual payment merchant whose partners include Microsoft and Facebook. We are the first municipality in the State of North Dakota, and the third in the nation, to offer this service.”
It has been reported by Cummings that utility bill payments will be the only bills eligible for crypto payment initially. He also said that the city will conduct quality assessments to expand the new payment method for bills like licenses, landfills, and permits.
However, the new payment method is in line with the city’s commitment to exploring more payment methods to keep pace with existing payment alternatives and enable contactless payments.
He said:
“There are also a number of advantages to utilizing these online payment methods including security, convenience, and cost savings.”
According to the announcement, BitPay charges a 1% fee to pay utility bills online, versus a 3% commission for payments via services like Google Pay, Apple Pay, and PayPal.
One big step further to crypto mass adoption! If you live near North Dakota, you will be able to pay for your utilities through digital assets. How awesome is that? https://t.co/uXuINBFnxU — Cointelegraph (@Cointelegraph) May 15, 2021
Thus, Williston residents can visit the official city website and provide their account information to receive a BitPay invoice. Individuals can create a digital wallet for payments directly with BitPay or other services like crypto exchanges.
Source: Cointelegraph
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