One of the first stories I ever wrote for VISOR was about a Lamborghini dealership in the USA accepting Bitcoin payments. That was back in 2017, when BTC stood at a mere $5,900 a coin.

A lot has happened since. Bitcoin now stands at over $60,000 a coin. Crypto, in general, has become huge, and car firms have realized that it’s smart to accept this magic Internet money.

One of the firms that have warmed up to Bitcoin recently is Ferrari. The Italians started accepting BTC payments in the US less than a year ago, and are now expanding the option to customers in Europe. Just like the initial Lambo dealer in the US, Ferrari isn’t accepting digital payments in its most native way or keeping Bitcoin on its balance sheet.

Instead, the supercar maker is using a third-party service to handle the payments. This means that a buyer can pay in BTC, but the amount is converted to fiat currency at the time of purchase and Ferrari receives US dollars, euros or other non-crypto currencies in bank accounts.

Such payment services are commonplace now, and you could argue that accepting crypto this way is little more than a gimmick.

A true BTC purchase would mean sending Bitcoin straight from the buyer to the seller, and the seller usually keeps the amount and will not convert it. As there is still some nervousness about Bitcoin’s volatility in the market, Ferrari probably decided not to take any risks and have the amount exchanged to fiat.

Using a third-party service also allows the company to check that the funds are clean, and haven’t been generated through crime or on the dark Web. This is done using blockchain analysis tools.

I think it’s only a matter of time until pretty much all carmakers accept crypto in some form or another. Digital currencies have now become so widespread in use that they can’t be ignored any longer, and many people not only make good money working in the field, but also get paid in Bitcoin, Ethereum, or stable coins like USDT.

They naturally expect companies to accept these currencies for payments, and with pockets full of digital cash, they are potentially lucrative customers, especially for luxury brands. So, expect Ferrari to expand BTC acceptance to other regions very soon, with Asia hopefully being on the agenda as well.