Airbnb to Enable Customers to Make Payments in Crypto Very Soon

The world’s single largest accommodation service provider Airbnb might enable customers to pay in crypto.

Customers Want Crypto as a Payment

Recently, in a  tweet CEO Airbnb Brian Chesky asked his followers what they want to see the company doing in the year 2022. Yesterday Chesky briefed about the answers he got from the Netizens. He noted that while the suggestions included better customer service, a guest loyalty program, and updated cleaning fees, and the company is already working on most of them, and will also look into others, the top suggestion that the customers made to CEO Chesky is the integration of crypto into the Airbnb payment infrastructure.

Got 4,000 suggestions. Here are the top 6:

1 – Crypto payments (top suggestion)
2 – Clear pricing displays
3 – Guest loyalty program
4 – Updated cleaning fees
5 – More long-term stays & discounts
6 – Better customer service

Already working on most, will look into others now! https://t.co/rxEM4BXZci

— Brian Chesky (@bchesky) January 5, 2022

Chesky further added that diversity with which the masses suggested different tokens as the company’s payment option, clearly indicates that the crypto payment service by the company will not be limited to one or two digital assets.

Airbnb and Crypto

It is not the first time the CEO has acknowledged customers’ longing for crypto payment. In Sep 2021 Chesky told the media outlet Fox Business that he has been receiving requests for crypto payment from many clients for years. Later in Nov the CEO told The Verge that they are  “definitely looking into” crypto and the metaverse, as he further added:

“Like the revolution in travel, there is clearly a revolution happening in crypto. Airbnb and crypto both have interesting relationships with trust,”

At the moment Airbnb already accepts Mastercard, Visa, Apple Pay, Google Pay and PayPal, as methods of payment. Enabling customers to pay in crypto, will give the company a certain lead over its competitors. Airbnb has received $336 billion in respect of payments since 2013.

In the past Chesky has also shown his pride for CEO of Coinbase, the largest crypto exchange in the US, being Airbnb’s former employee.