German Energy Giant Now Accepts Bitcoin for Utility Bills

Time will tell how many customers will accept Bitcoin as a method of payment for their utility bills, says Enercity which announced on Friday, September 16 that Hanover residents can now pay for their energy use with the virtual currency. Enercity CEO, Dr. Susanna Zapreva, who made the announcement, said digitization has already been fixed into various parts of the everyday life of their customers and the introduction of Bitcoin payment is just a step on the road to the digital future. In a statement from the company, it says digitization has changed the whole economy including the energy....

Bitcoin as a global payment option is just one step “on the road to a digital future”. Using Bitcoin for everyday needs and purchases remains somewhat difficult. The average person on the street will not buy cryptocurrency to pay for computer parts or book a trip to Italy. But Enercity, a German energy provider, has added a proper use case, as they now accept Bitcoin payments. This means users can pay their electricity bill with Bitcoin directly. In most countries, cryptocurrency enthusiasts would be more than happy to pay regular bills with Bitcoin. Until that becomes a reality,....

Bitcoin exchange and services firm Coincheck will soon enable Japanese citizens to pay utility bills with bitcoin. Bills will be cheaper, compared to payments made through traditional means. Come November 2016, users in Japan will be able to pay their electricity bills with bitcoin. The feature, called Coincheck Denki (Electricity), stems from a broad new partnership between ResuPress Inc., parent company of bitcoin exchange and services provider Coincheck & Mitsuwa Industry Co. Ltd., a prominent energy provider in Japan with a presence of 76 years in the country. Coincheck will begin....

Amidst an evolution in the German utility industry, one power company is looking to blockchain technology as a means to cut costs and improve its customer experience. Five years ago, Germany’s government announced its intention to phase out the country's nuclear power plants, a move that came in the wake of the still-unresolved nuclear disaster in Fukushima, Japan. Celebrated by green power advocates and blasted by utility firms, the move has since resulted in a shift in how Germany produces its power, and a need for those utilities to innovate or risk facing a changing marketplace. RWE, a....

A new survey has found that the energy sector in Germany may soon be adopting the blockchain technology with many energy companies outlining a road map for the implementation of the technology in the future, according to the German news site, Contra Magazin. The survey, undertaken by Deutsche Energie-Agentur (German Energy Agency) and ESMT Berlin, looked at the responses from 70 executives serving firms in the energy sector. The results found that 39 percent indicated that their companies have plans in the future to implement the technology. While another 13 percent stated that they....