NZers can now pay rent and bills with bitcoin

New Zealanders can now pay their bills and rent using the increasingly popular cryptocurrency, bitcoin. This new capability is available through a feature called Pay Bills or Pay Rent with bitcoin and can be found on New Zealand’s number one digital currency exchange platform in terms of trade volume, igot.com.

The innovative feature allows users to make direct bill payments, including credit card, phone and internet bills, utilities bills, council rates and rent, using bitcoin and via a user’s everyday personal banking account.

Founded by Australian Rick Day and Patrick Manasse, igot.com is a one-stop shop to buy, sell, send and request cryptocurrencies safely at the click of a button. The addition of Pay Bills or Pay Rent means that users can not only trade in bitcoin but can now manage their day-to-day finances through igot’s secure platform and in real time.

Rick Day, co-founder of igot.com, says, "Bitcoin is now entering mainstream consciousness and user demand for bitcoin solutions and services, such as the ability to make bill payments, is growing by the minute. Since launch, we’ve seen an increasing number of users, including experienced traders and new users of bitcoin, become convinced of bitcoin’s benefits; the most attractive being lower processing fees on transaction costs, with savings of up to seven to eight per cent in some instances.

"While the full potential of bitcoin and other digital currencies are yet to be exploited, the adoption of bitcoin will only increase as more users realise its value in market as a reliable financial tool that offers an alternative to money or cash. igot’s bill payments feature demonstrates some of this potential."

Mr Day adds, "The function is convenient and simple to use when paying a bill or rent using bitcoin. igot.com pays the biller direct, deducting the user’s bitcoin balance based on the current market rate, enabling a fast and efficient transaction."

igot’s bill payment function will complement other igot developed and powered features such as Future Trade, which enables traders to overcome price volatility in bitcoin trades by automating future ‘buys’ or ‘sells’ based on a user’s pre-determined price expectations.

Over the next 12 months, igot.com plans to partner with several billers to offer Pay with Bitcoin service to their customers.