“Finance, cash or Crypto?” While this might not be a commonplace question for a car-buyer to be asked at the crucial moment in a new or used car purchase, perhaps things are starting to change.
The pattern of change is familiar. Supercar manufacturer Ferrari began accepting Cryptocurrency in the US back in 2023.
A year later, following a successful pilot it was possible in Europe.
Independent dealers in the UK, and particularly high-end luxury ones have taken to Cryptocurrency adoption fast. The likes of Amari Supercars, Redline Specialist Cars and Alexander Prestige have all accepted Crypto for some time.
However, it is no longer the exclusive right of high net worth individuals. Our business has seen a notable rise in smaller scale transactions with Cryptocurrency for lower value vehicles. On top of this we are seeing part-payments in Crypto and the total purchase of a car being settled with Crypto and finance.
Car buyers are becoming more confident with this currency and in turn so too should the retailers. As cryptocurrency gains traction across industries, car dealerships have a unique opportunity to modernise their payment systems and attract this new wave of customers.
Accepting Bitcoin, Ethereum, or other digital currencies is no longer a niche experiment. Instead, it has become a viable strategy for remaining competitive. For businesses wanting their own knowledge of Crypto to grow in tandem with that of their consumers, here are four critical factors to consider along with the benefits of having a Crypto payment partner in tow:
- Compliance is king
Cryptocurrency transactions come with regulatory requirements, such as anti-money laundering (AML) rules and Know Your Customer (KYC) verification, which can overwhelm sales teams that are unfamiliar with the space.
Without these checks and verifications in place no transaction should take place. Partnering with a payments business that specialises in Crypto removes this burden entirely. By managing all compliance needs, verifying customer identities, monitoring transactions, and ensuring adherence to legal standards, there is simply no need for your automotive retailer to become a regulatory expert.
- Beware of the swing
Cryptocurrency’s price swings can erode profits if dealerships hold digital assets too long. A car sold for Bitcoin worth £50,000 today could drop in value tomorrow – we would strongly advise against holding Crypto for this very reason. Instead, partner with a business that can make the conversion from Crypto into local currency (in this case pounds and pence) at the point of sale. This protects against market volatility while giving customers the freedom to pay with their preferred digital assets.
- Best in class CX
Customer experience remains business critical in the retail automotive space, particularly in the franchised dealer world where significant financial gains are available to those businesses able to provide a 10/10 experience to car-buyers. Offering Crypto as a payment method is great but it must be executed seamlessly and if it is not your area of expertise, far too much can go wrong and cause delays.
Partner with a business that can provide a seamless, intuitive payment interface that makes transactions quick and transparent for customers. From displaying real-time exchange rates to processing payments securely, CryptoAutos ensures a polished experience without dealership staff needing to manage the technical details.
- Streamlined financial accounting
For tax and accounting purposes, Cryptocurrency is often treated as property rather than currency, which can seriously complicate bookkeeping. Our advice is to keep it simple and only accept local currency into the business. In order to do this the Crypto will need to be converted at point of sale so that there is only one form of payment coming into the business clear, dealership-friendly transaction records. These records slot effortlessly into existing financial systems, meaning dealerships can process Crypto sales as they would any other transaction.
According to the latest figures from Triple A, there are more than 560m Cryptocurrency holders worldwide – that’s 7% of the global population. With millions of people now owning cryptocurrency, dealerships that accept it tap into a growing, affluent demographic, often younger, tech-forward buyers.
Partnering with CryptoAutos positions dealerships as pioneers, appealing to this market without the risks of handling Crypto directly. As cryptocurrency adoption accelerates, early adopters using CryptoAutos can build loyalty among these customers and gain a competitive edge. It’s a low-risk, high-reward move made possible by CryptoAutos’ end-to-end payment solution.
Harley Foote is CEO at CryptoAutos