The multinational insurance and asset management company, AXA, announced on Thursday that it will begin accepting payments in bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency on the markets, from clients in Switzerland.
The insurer AXIS published a release recent where it informs its Swiss clients that they can now pay for its services with the cryptocurrency Bitcoin (BTC)AXA has announced that it is integrating Bitcoin into its payment options to meet the current high demand for crypto assets in the market.
In its announcement, the multinational insurance company, headquartered in Paris, France, says that it is the first insurer in Switzerland to allow its customers to pay bills with bitcoin. According to the company, the acceptance of the cryptocurrency represents an investment in AXA's digital future.
The insurer is partnering with a Swiss cryptocurrency broker to implement BTC payments, although it noted that it will not hold them on its balance sheets, but that the cryptocurrencies received will be immediately converted to Swiss francs. Also, users who wish to use this payment option must pay a commission fee of 1,75% of the total transaction amount. The insurance multinational reports that this commission is charged by the cryptocurrency broker that provides the crypto payment platform.
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⅓ of AXA clients order bitcoin
In its statement, AXA revealed that A third of its customers are already using bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies, or were interested in acquiring them, so the company saw the need to integrate this digital asset among its payment options, and satisfy the great demand that exists in the market for this type of assets. AXA has been conducting research studies since 2019 and applied surveys to find out the percentage of its clients who were venturing into or interested in the digital world.
On the other hand, the insurance company explained that the expansion of COVID-19 globally accelerated the need for digitalization in all industries, and boosted the use and adoption of cryptocurrencies as a means of payment and exchange of value in the world.
Claudia Bienentreu, head of open innovation at AXA Switzerland, said that this is AXA's response to the growing demand from its customers for alternative payment solutions. For the company, new technologies, such as cryptocurrencies, are playing an increasingly important role globally.
The new bitcoin payment option has been available at AXA since the beginning of this month, but it was only made public now. AXA also stated that the crypto payment option is available for all its services, except for life insurance services from AXA Insurance Ltd.
Only the beginning
AXA says that the bitcoin payment solution is just the beginning of its journey into the world of cryptocurrencies and digital transformation. In the future, the insurance firm hopes to launch other payment solutions with other crypto assets that will help it diversify the payment options for its products and services.
“The range of payment options and services that can be used via the MyAXA Web and app will continue to expand in the future.”
AXA is the latest company in the multi-billion dollar insurance industry to join the digital innovation of cryptocurrencies and digital assets, although it has been using the technology blockchain in automobile records since 2017. NYDIG, a subsidiary of Stone Ridge Asset Management, and MassMutual are also entering the cryptocurrency industry.
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