This is interesting. Local nightlife mainstay Wonderland has announced they will only be accepting cryptocurrency like Bitcoin going forward. The idea grew out of the difficulty of using cash and credit cards at the bar, especially late at night.
They announced in a press release: “No one uses cash anymore, and after 11 pm basically everyone forgets their credit card. Cryptocurrency will allow us to make sure people pay their tabs when they leave, or if not, pay them automatically.”
When asked about how it will work, staff said “I think there’s like a wallet or something with numbers you have. You tell us the numbers and it gets processed. It’s really easy. I think it takes a few hours to go through.”
As for the volatility of Bitcoin, which can go up and down throughout the day, they’ll have electronic screens that show the current price of Bitcoin in dollars and the current price of drinks, which will change as the exchange rate varies. There will be specials if Bitcoin plummets too. The cloud is involved too.
This is a new idea for the area, so I reached out to DCRA and the city’s Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration, who regulate bars, to ask about using Bitcoin at Wonderland. One inspector told me “Yes, this is definitely fine.” Another said “No, that is definitely illegal.”
