In an interview with Bloomberg, CEO of Uber, Dara Khosrowshahi said that the company will accept cryptocurrency in the future.
In Brief:
- Uber CEO says that right at this moment it’s not the right point for cryptocurrency to be a payment option.
- High transaction fees and environmental impact are some reasons for the company to yet incorporate the tech in their app.
Uber Technologies Inc, the San Francisco-based world’s largest ride-sharing app, today reaffirmed its intention to accept various forms of cryptocurrency, including Bitcoin.
Uber customers will eventually be able to use bitcoin to pay for their trips – though the company is waiting for a couple of improvements before giving the go-ahead.
“I think right now what we see with Bitcoin and some of the other cryptos is that they are quite valuable as a store of value,” Khosrowshahi said.
Khosrowshahi cited the cost of exchanges, which can carry high transaction fees, and the environmental impact of digital mining on the energy grid, which requires a massive amount of electricity – as well as steep costs for exchanges involving digital assets – as reasons for Uber’s lack of adoption of the technology.
All the same, Uber’s CEO appears to be confident that these issues will be resolved one day.
“Is Uber going to accept crypto in the future? Absolutely, at some point. This isn’t the right point. But we will.”
This isn’t the first time a popular ride-sharing app has come out in favor of cryptocurrencies. IPS and The Payment House announced in a partnership to allow cryptocurrency as a payment for cabs in UK and Scandinavia.
