St Moritz becomes first Swiss ski resort to accept Bitcoin

St Moritz is head and shoulders above the crowds - and clouds - with its Bitcoin decision. Keystone

Ski lifts in and around St Moritz in the Engadine Valley have started accepting Bitcoins as payment for passes. 

According to Swiss public television, SRF, and the newspaper Südostschweiz, Engadin St Moritz is the first Swiss lift company to recognise payments with cryptocurrencies. 

Company director Markus Meili told Südostschweiz he wasn’t worried about the Bitcoin bubble bursting – despite its value surging from $1,000 (CHF990) at the beginning of the year to above $17,000 earlier this month.  

“We also have to accept the euro, regardless of the exchange rate,” Meili said. “We have to keep up with the times, especially when it comes to digitilisation.” 

However, according to Swiss Bitcoin specialists there are just over 200 companies in all sectors of Switzerland that accept payments in the currency. 

In September, the southern Swiss town of Chiasso announced it would accept Bitcoins as payment for tax bills up to CHF250, and in the same month, a fast food sausage company put Bitcoins on the list of payment methods alongside cash and debit and credit cards.

Here’s how Bitcoin works.

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