The largest insurer in Switzerland, AXA, has partnered with crypto broker Bitcoin Suisse and has started accepting Bitcoin payments. While AXA customers can choose to pay their bills using Bitcoin at no extra charges, Bitcoin Suisse will include its commission of 1.75% when calculating Bitcoin/Swiss franc exchange rates for AXA customers. Customers simply need an online transfer with a reference number to use the new Bitcoin payment method.
Also, AXA will accept BTC in exchange for almost all its products, except for life insurance. The exception of life insurance is caused by regulatory barriers.
According to AXA, the accelerated global adoption of digital payments at the peak of the health crisis fuelled its choice to venture into the crypto business. AXA cited research that revealed that nearly a third of respondents between the ages of 18 and 55 either owned or were interested in digital assets as of 2019.
The head of innovation at AXA Switzerland, Claudia Bienentreu, stated that the insurer’s choice to accept Bitcoin payment is its “response to growing demand from its customers for alternative payment solutions, with new technologies playing an ever greater role.”
Like Tesla, AXA said it would keep Bitcoin payments received on its balance sheet and not convert to fiat currency.
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