Are you aware of the e-shopping site called Shoppe? This platform was first launched in Singapore in 2015 then reached to Malaysia, Thailand, Taiwan, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines. Basically covering the south east asia. It got me thinking how Uber accepted bitcoin and I wondered if is it possible that e-shopping site accepts bitcoin?
Maybe not. Shopee is known for very cheap items and I doubt there will be people wanting to pay in bitcoin. And is bitcoin that big in south east asia? But I thought that if bitcoin gets accepted in shopee, it will be a huge sign of adoption.
This online shopping app is becoming increasingly popular in my country. Besides the low prices, we also benefit from cheap and fast shipping. In fact, in my country, most people shop on this app without having to pay shipping fees. I'm serious about this, because I use it frequently, and almost 90% of everything I buy there is free shipping.
And back to the topic of whether Shopee will potentially accept Bitcoin or crypto payments. I think it's very possible in the future, but not now or in the near future. The problem isn't with Shopee itself, but rather with the regulations in each country that Shopee must comply with.
In my country, Indonesia, crypto assets can only be used as commodities and are not permitted as a means of payment at all. Therefore, various online shopping platforms still cannot allow customers from our country to accept Bitcoin or other crypto assets. Although there are several ways to still pay with crypto, even if not directly, I don't think paying directly with crypto is possible at this time. Unless there are regulatory changes in the future, it is very possible that this will happen.