Despite there being multiple issues with fiat currency as we know it today, things take a drastic turn for the worse once a local currency becomes utterly useless. American Airlines, one of the world’s leading airlines in the world, announced they are no longer accepting payments in Argentine Peso. There is no better time than now to get start working with Bitcoin payments.
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American Airlines & Argentine Peso Is A No-Go
According to the statement released by American Airlines, the company is no longer accepting Argentine Peso payments due to “no inventory available for purchases in this currency due to repatriation issues”. For those who can not read between the lines: American Airlines is having issues when trying to convert Argentine Peso to US Dollar.
Due to this decision, it is impossible to book any flight with Argentine Peso for the time being. However, American Airlines still accepts purchasing made by Argentinians using foreign credit cards denominated in a different fiat currency; It is no secret how the Argentine peso has been losing a lot of its value over the past years, and it looks like there is no improvement in sight anytime soon.
Truth be told, this issue is not entirely American Airlines’ fault either. The company is falling victim to several things going in Argentina itself, which is limiting any business manoeuvrability. With Argentina’s central bank reducing the daily amount of money foreign companies can bring back to the US, there is very little room for major businesses to operate as normal.
To make matters even worse, there are major changes coming to Argentina’s currency. Now that a new President has been elected, major economic reforms have been announced. Among those reforms is ending the government’s currency controls, which can turn out to be either positive or negative.
A Huge Opportunity for Bitcoin
Regardless of how the situation with the Argentine Peso plays out in the near future, this decision by American Airlines creates a major opportunity for Bitcoin. Accepting this disruptive digital currency would allow Argentinians to still book flights with American Airlines, regardless of whether they owned a foreign credit card or not.
Obtaining such a credit card is quite a struggle in Argentina, as there are strong verification requirements before being granted this benefit. Additionally, most citizens in the country don’t even have access to regular financial services, let alone obtaining foreign-based tools. Bitcoin could solve the problem for all parties involved, and put American Airlines on the map as one of the pioneers to accept digital currency payments.
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Source: CNN Money
