Local estate agent becomes first in country to accept bitcoin

It was in 2016 that the city of Zug made headline news for being the first municipality in the country to accept payment in bitcoin for some of its services, up to a certain level.
 
Since this time wine-merchant Albert Osmani has also been accepting this crypto-currency for payment and he has been very pleased with it. Now local estate agent Kurt Blunschi is doing the same. “I am the first person in this business in Switzerland to accept bitcoin,” he said, as he added how he worked in close cooperation with the Bitcoin Suisse AG company of Zug.
 
One might imagine that entrepreneurs prepared to accept bitcoin would be of the younger generation but Blunschi is 66. He has been in the property business for some time, albeit taking a break between 2012 and 2016 for health reasons. Now he is back in business with a new firm, Park Immobilien AG, which deals primarily in high-end properties. “I am an estate agent through and through,” he said, adding how he found it “cool” to be able to offer something new like purchasing with bitcoin, targeting those people in particular who have benefited from its increase value.
 
On this point, let it be mentioned that, at the beginning of this month, it was as high as $5,000 but by last Friday afternoon it had fallen to below $3,000 possibly due to the Chinese national bank banning its use. However, by Friday evening it had recovered to $3,800. As of Saturday, its value was $3,650 (CHF 3,503 or £2,685).
 
When asked how he came to accept payment in bitcoin, Blunschi said how a friend of his in Liechtenstein, also an estate agent, had sold a lot of property in a short period of time, accepting payment through bitcoin. Furthermore, he was instrumental in finding premises for the Bitcoin Suisse AG company, actually in the same building on Industriestrasse in which he operates. Indeed, an employee of this latter-named company, a sort of stock exchange for crypto-currencies, has set up a special tool which ensures the current price of the properties in bitcoin are up-to-date; prices are also indicated in Swiss francs.
 
As Andrej Majcen of Bitcoin Suisse AG explained, one problem is that, with some companies dealing in crypto-curriencies, it is not easy to exchange large sums of bitcoin, such as needed for a house purchase, in one transaction, hence different exchange rates would apply and this could lead to losses. However, this does not apply at Bitcoin Suisse AG, one of the biggest players in the market.
 
Paying for property acquired through Park Immobilien in bitcoin would mean that the funds are paid initially to Bitcoin Suisse, who would arrange for the money to be exchanged (for a fee) prior to it being paid on to Blunschi. Should the exchange rate have changed in the meantime, either further payment would be due or overpayment would be refunded.
 
One point not to be overlooked is that Bitcoin Suisse is under obligation by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (Finma) to declare the provenance of any bitcoin used. As Majcen explained, thanks to blockchain technology, all transactions through bitcoin can be stored.
 
He went to say that he knew of no other estate agents accepting bitcoins as payment, through his company at least. “I think it is a good idea, especially bearing in mind a lot of companies being lured to Crypto Valley here in Zug are open to bitcoin,” he said.
 
While Blunschi is prepared to accept payment for house purchase in bitcoin, this does not apply when it comes to making payment for rental properties, as this would be too complicated.