Lugano residents can now pay taxes and other public services using crypto.
The city of Lugano announced today that it is now accepting Bitcoin and Tether (USDT) as payment options for taxes and other municipal services. Lugano residents and businesses can use either currency to pay any bill issued by the city, through a streamlined process enabled by the Swiss crypto firm Bitcoin Suisse.
“It is great to see that more and more Swiss municipalities are offering payments in cryptocurrencies as an option available to both citizens and companies, complementing traditional payment methods such as post-office counters and e-banking platforms,” said Bitcoin Suisse Chief Product Officer Armin Schmid.
The move is part of Lugano’s “Plan B,” a collaboration with Tether to transform the city’s financial infrastructure using Bitcoin technology. Plan B strives to integrate blockchain solutions into daily municipal operations. Along with today’s crypto payment expansion, Lugano intends to bring crypto payments into other areas of civic life.
Bitcoin Suisse aids Lugano’s adoption of crypto payments by providing the technical backbone for accepting Bitcoin and Tether. Leveraging Swiss QR-Bill technology, the system allows Lugano residents to simply scan a code on their bill and pay the desired amount with their preferred mobile crypto wallet.
Last month, Polygon announced a payment app called MyLugano that would allow Lugano residents to pay taxes, parking tickets, and public services using crypto.
In 2021, Switzerland’s ‘crypto valley’ canton Zug started accepting Bitcoin and ETH for tax payments after partnering with local firm Bitcoin Suisse to convert crypto tax payments into Swiss francs.
