The CEO of AirBnB said that the platform’s potential crypto payment option will not be limited to one or two digital currencies.
On Monday, Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky tweeted a poll to his roughly 400,000 followers, asking what they wanted from the rental platform in 2022.
Chesky stated today that the majority of respondents want to be able to pay for their next house or apartment on Airbnb with Bitcoin (BTC) or other popular digital currencies. Other demands included clear pricing displays, a visitor loyalty programme, up-to-date cleaning fees, and improved customer service.
Chesky also stated that he has seen a variety of token concepts, hinting that Airbnb’s prospective cryptocurrency payment options will not be limited to one or two digital assets. Visa, MasterCard, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and PayPal are presently accepted as payment methods by Airbnb. In addition, the CEO stated that the lodging company has processed $336 billion in transactions since 2013.
Chesky has been outspoken on the promise of emerging technology. In September, he told Fox Business that the company has had a large number of requests about cryptocurrency payments:
“We get a lot of requests, I’ve been getting it for years, I have nothing to announce on it today.”
During an interview with The Verge’s Nilay Patel in November, he was questioned about the future of crypto and the metaverse:
“We are definitely looking into it. Absolutely. Like the revolution in travel, there is clearly a revolution happening in crypto. Airbnb and crypto both have interesting relationships with trust.”
He went on to say that Coinbase’s CEO, Brian Armstrong, was a former employee of Airbnb. The crypto excitement surrounding Airbnb comes as the company faces more competition from decentralised blockchain-based rivals such as Travala.com’s Dtravel, which offers a vacation rental service.
