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While the anticipated approval for the spot Bitcoin ETF has become the focus of attention worldwide, new reports continue to emerge from different parts of the world. In today’s increasingly widespread e-commerce, exciting news has come from Japan. Mercari, one of Japan’s largest e-commerce platforms, announced that it will start accepting Bitcoin (BTC) payments as of June 2024.
Japanese E-Commerce Giants Embracing Bitcoin
According to shared information, it has become clear how the company will execute payments. The company will facilitate Bitcoin payments through its Tokyo-based crypto subsidiary Melcoin. Melcoin will convert BTC payments to yen, and following this, purchasers will pay in BTC, while sellers will collect in fiat currency.
The company has stated that products listed for sale in fiat yen will not publish prices in Bitcoin. Additionally, customers will be able to use BTC as a payment method at the end of their shopping on the website.
Since its establishment in 2013, Mercari has continued to grow and is now positioned as Japan’s largest community marketplace platform.
Company data shared in July 2023 indicated that it had 22 million monthly users. The company is also striving to gain strength in overseas continents and countries, including Europe, beyond Japan.
In recent months, the company introduced several products and applications that excite crypto investors, including the Mercari Bitcoin crypto trading service.
This crypto trading service allows users to buy and sell Bitcoin using the income they earn through sales on the platform. Additionally, this emerging platform is connected to Mercari’s crypto trading arm and has a loyalty point system, with Mercari users able to acquire Bitcoin with the points they earn.
According to the company’s announcement, the Mercari Bitcoin trading service exceeded the 1 million user threshold as of October.
The Relationship Between E-Commerce and Bitcoin
Some crypto enthusiasts who have analyzed this initiative have described the service offered by Mercari and a competing platform operated by another giant, Rakuten, as a new “gateway” for Bitcoin and crypto investors. Similar to Mercari, the Japanese e-commerce platform Rakuten has been present in the crypto space for a longer period.
The company owns the Rakuten Wallet crypto trading service. In the past, the company integrated a loyalty point system, similar to Mercari’s path, with its crypto arm, allowing users to exchange their points for cryptocurrencies.
According to a survey conducted last month, a significant portion of Japanese who started trading cryptocurrencies at the end of 2022 used Mercari’s Bitcoin Trading application (24.7%) or Rakuten’s Rakuten Wallet platform (24.2%).
