US-based mobility service provider Uber might soon add crypto to their list of accepted payments options. This was revealed by Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber, who said in a Bloomberg interview that the firm would “absolutely” accept cryptocurrency in the future.
According to the ride-sharing firm’s boss, customers will eventually be able to use bitcoin to pay for their trips, though the company is waiting for a couple of improvements before it gives the go-ahead signal..
Khosrowshahi said the company is “having conversations all the time” on whether it should begin to accept cryptocurrencies as a form of payment.
“Is Uber going to accept crypto in the future? Absolutely, at some point,” Khosrowshahi told Bloomberg.
The exec however told the news outlet that it has been a little slow in jumping on the cryptocurrency bandwagon due to concerns of the environmental impact of mining as it requires an enormous amount of electricity and the high transaction cost between exchanges.
As the exchange mechanism becomes less expensive, becomes more environmentally friendly, I think you will see us lean into crypto a little bit more,” he added.
Critics of digital assets have always maintained that such assets are prone to extreme volatility and raised questions on the feasibility of considering digital assets as a form of payment. At the time of this post, the price of bitcoin was hovering at $42,149, which has posted a marginal recovery over the week but is still considerably down from its all-time high of $69,000 last November.
Major firms leaning towards crypto
Many major companies have gradually warmed up their stance to embrace cryptocurrencies in transactions in recent years. Microsoft began accepting bitcoin as a form of payment in its online store back in 2014.
In January, Tesla started accepting the meme token Dogecoin for some merchandise in its online store. Its CEO Elon Musk is a longtime supporter of bitcoin, Dogecoin, and other cryptocurrencies. Musk has also inspired other companies to follow his lead.
Last month, the billionaire said that he would agree to eat a Happy Meal on television if fast-food giant McDonald’s started accepting Dogecoin.
A few days ago TronWeekly had reported on one of the big four accounting firms’ KPMG announcement to add bitcoin and ethereum to their balance sheet.