Cryptocurrencies, although not currently at their strongest, have become an increasingly used means with which to make purchases and even pay for plane tickets, and now, because of increasing demand, Aena has decided to launch a pilot scheme of the installation of ATMs in airports, choosing three tourist destinations for this purpose.
These are Alicante-Elche airport, together with Palma de Mallorca and Ibiza, where travellers will become the first in Spain to be able to acquire digital currencies.
Should the trial produce positive results, it will be extended to other airports cross the country.
The use of bitcoins is becoming increasingly common as more and more people are making transactions for the purchase of clothing, video games, gift cards and even plane tickets with the cryptocurrency. On this basis, Aena has awarded licenses to install the first cryptocurrency ATMs in the three Spanish airports.
According to Aena, the company that has been awarded the permit is the startup BitBase, which is recognized by the Bank of Spain as a provider of virtual currency exchange services for fiduciary currency. It is expected that in the coming weeks the ATMs will be available in these three terminals.
Crypto currency ATM’s were first introduced at Heathrow and Gatwick airports in 2014 but here in Spain these first machines are being introduced as a trial. Aena says that it has chosen the three airports because they are of relevance at a tourist level and deepending on the acceptance and the results, they could be extended elsewhere.
Spain is currently the third country in the world with the most cryptocurrency ATMs, behind the United States and Canada, with some 217 units, although until now they have not been available at airports.
Meanwhile, Alicante-Elche Airport has registered more than one and a half million passengers during the month of July, which represents a recovery of 88% of passenger traffic in 2019, pre pandemic.
Both national and international traffic showed similar trends during the month, in relation to the traffic levels of the year 2019. The international market had the highest number of travellers with 1.2 million passengers, and the domestic market accounted for more than 224 thousand travellers, almost 30% more than in July 2019.
The countries from which Alicante received the most travellers were the United Kingdom, Spain, Norway, Belgium, Holland and Germany.
