Ocado and Homebase will give cashback in BITCOIN: UK retail giants are among 40 firms using new scheme to let customers use QR codes to earn crypto-currency with every purchase
- Major UK retailers announce plans to give online shoppers cashback in bitcoin
- Crypto rewards scheme will give Britons option to use QR-code based system
- Customers can use app operated by London-based open banking firm Mode
- Fintech company already has partnerships with LK Bennett and The Hut Group
- The cashback payments will be jointly funded by Mode and its partner brands
- It is expected to see customers receive from 5 to 10 per cent back on purchases
Major British retailers including Ocado and Homebase are claimed to be among 40 retailers who are set to give online shoppers cashback in bitcoin.
The crypto rewards scheme will give Britons the option to use a QR-code based system at the checkout, and is operated by London-based open banking firm Mode.
The fintech company already has partnerships with LK Bennett and about 30 brands owned by The Hut Group including Zavvi, Lookfantastic, MyProtein and ESPA.
Now Ocado and Homebase customers using Mode’s QR system will be able to make cardless payments and earn bitcoin with online purchases from April next year.
Mode also claimed in a press release today that it was partnering with Boots, but a spokesman for the retailer denied being involved with the project to MailOnline.
The cashback payments will be jointly funded by Mode and its partner brands – and are expected to see customers receive from 5 to 10 per cent back on purchases.
The crypto rewards scheme is operated by London-based open banking company Mode
Customers will be able to browse cashback offers at participating retailers on the Mode app
Bitcoin, which is the world’s biggest cryptocurrency, is hovering around the level of $60,000 (£45,000) at the moment, having more than doubled its value since the start of this year
Mode chief executive Ryan Moore said today that the development was a ‘major step in making the asset class more accessible to consumers of all demographics’.
He told MailOnline: ‘I am delighted to announce the development of our Bitcoin Cashback offering as a standalone product, following the fantastic response from our customers, and accelerating appetite for the cryptocurrency.
How will Mode’s bitcoin cashback system work?
The crypto rewards scheme via the Mode app will give Britons the option to use its QR-code based system at the checkout of 40 UK retailers.
Customers will be able to browse cashback offers at participating retailers on the Mode app, before going to that retailer’s website to complete their purchase.
The bitcoin will be credited into the customer’s Mode account, where they can store the asset or use the company’s FCA-registered exchange to try to grow their bitcoin.
People will be able to make cardless payments and earn bitcoin with their purchases from April next year.
The cashback payments will be jointly funded by Mode and its partner brands and are expected to see customers receive from 5 to 10 per cent back on purchases.
‘This marks a major step in making the asset class more accessible to consumers of all demographics, ultimately bringing Bitcoin into the hands of millions of customers across the UK.’
The firm is also trying to take on bigger rivals with a platform of lower transaction fees and ‘instantaneous settlement’ for merchants, reported City AM.
Mode’s share price rose by 12.5 per cent yesterday ahead of the announcement this morning, although it has fallen by 22.3 per cent compared to its initial offering price in October 2020.
Customers using the new system will be able to browse cashback offers at participating retailers on the Mode app, before going to that retailer’s website to complete their purchase.
The bitcoin will be credited into the customer’s Mode account, where they can store the asset or use the company’s Financial Conduct Authority-registered exchange to try to grow their bitcoin.
A Mode spokesman said that its bitcoin cashback ‘counters traditional loyalty and cashback programmes, which can offer rewards that are hard to withdraw, slow to redeem or irrelevant to the customer’.
It added that it was ‘turning legacy rewards schemes on their head by providing customers in the UK with the opportunity to build a stake in bitcoin, without taking on the risk of investing’.
The company said the expansion of the scheme is the next step in a ‘strategy to develop a next-generation loyalty scheme that offers relevant rewards with real value to consumers’.
And it said that the programme ‘will also enable retailers to boost loyalty amongst higher value demographics’.
Online delivery company Ocado is also going to be involved in the app from April next year
Homebase is a further major British company involved in the new cashback app from Mode
Mode is an fintech company listed on the London Stock Exchange which states that it is ‘on a mission to build the world’s most disruptive ecosystem where exchanging value and growing wealth is seamless for all’.
Speaking last month, John Gallemore, chief executive of The Hut Group Ingenuity, told City AM: ‘We are constantly innovating and providing new solutions to THG brands and THG Ingenuity partners.
‘Mode’s payments solution will provide our customers with additional payment opportunities to suit their needs and is another step in the platform’s evolution.’
MailOnline has contacted Homebase and Ocado for comment today.
LK Bennett is already a partner of Mode and is working with the firm on bitcoin cashback
Mode claimed Boots is among the firms signed up for its cashback app, but Boots denied this
Bitcoin, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency, is hovering around the level of $60,000 (£45,000), having more than doubled its value since the start of this year.
Cryptocurrencies have swelled in total value to more than $2.6trillion (£1.9trillion), putting them on par with the world’s most valuable stock, Microsoft.
Bitcoin reached a record $69,000 (£51,000) last Wednesday – and such fast growth is drawing in more investors, as well as gaining the attention of global regulators.
This week, Australian baseball team Perth Heat said it would pay its players in bitcoin and accept it for ticket and food sales amid a belief that it is ‘the future of money’.
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