During the ongoing war in Ukraine, pharmacies are moving towards digital payments, with a leading local pharmacy chain now accepting cryptocurrency payments such as Bitcoin (BTC).
ANC Pharmacy, a prominent pharmacy chain in Ukraine, has teamed up with Binance Ukraine to introduce cryptocurrency payments through the contactless Binance Pay service.
Starting from January 3, ANC Pharmacy customers can make instant payments when buying pharmacy products online, as announced by the pharmacy chain.
With over 1,000 pharmacies across Ukraine and its own online pharmacy service, ANC Pharmacy will first implement Binance Pay payments in pharmacies located in Kyiv.
This new payment option will be available in ANC pharmacies as well as in other pharmacy stores operated by ANC Pharmacy, such as Kopiyka and Shara. The official announcement mentioned that “ANC, Kopiyka and Shara are the first pharmacies in Europe to accept crypto.”
To make a crypto payment at ANC pharmacies, users must download the Binance app and visit the ANC.ua website. Once they select a product for online purchase, users can pay using the Binance Pay service and collect their order at a preferred pharmacy.
Binance Ukraine representatives have not responded immediately to Cointelegraph’s request for comments.
Binance has been actively expanding its presence in Ukraine for some time now. In September 2022, Binance collaborated with Ukrainian supermarket chain Varus, enabling customers to pay for groceries through the Binance Pay Wallet.
Prior to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, in early February 2022, Kirill Khomyakov, general manager of Binance Ukraine, expressed that introducing a Binance Card in Ukraine was a major goal for the company in 2022.
According to Khomyakov, crypto payments using services like Binance Card do not violate Ukrainian laws since there is no prohibition on crypto-related transactions in the country. However, direct payments in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are not allowed under local laws.
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