Ready to upload your Starbucks app with Bitcoin? | News and opinions

Starbucks is working with the owner of the New York Stock Exchange and Microsoft to develop a virtual currency trading platform.

The platform stems from an idea of ​​Intercontinental Exchange, the owner of NYSE. Friday announced the birth of a new company called Bakkt that will develop an open system to help consumers and institutions buy, sell and store digital goods.

"His first use cases will be for the trading and conversion of Bitcoin against fiat currencies, as Bitcoin is today the most liquid digital currency," said Intercontinental Exchange in a statement.

Among the proponents there is Starbucks, which does not reveal details about its involvement in the project. However, the company reported that it would eventually like to accept virtual currencies in its 28,000 stores.

"As a leading retailer, Starbucks will play a pivotal role in developing practical, reliable, and regulated consumer applications to convert its digital assets to the United States – dollars for use at Starbucks," he said in a statement by the vice president of the company Maria Smith.

This suggests that Starbucks will not accept Bitcoin directly; it will only help you exchange your virtual currencies in US dollars through the company's app.

Bitcoin was originally intended to replace legal currencies when it emerged almost a decade ago, but a problem was its extreme volatility. After reaching an all-time high of $ 20,000 per currency in December, virtual currency is now valued at around $ 7,400, and price fluctuations continue to this day.

As the new Bakkt platform will solve all this is not completely clear. But Intercontinental Exchange said it is trying to bring some confidence to the "digital heritage" market with a platform that promotes "greater efficiency, security and usefulness."

"We aim to build trust in the business class on a global scale," said Intercontinental Exchange CEO Jeffrey Sprecher in a statement

Starbucks refused to provide a calendar for integration of his coffee positions with Bakkt . However, more details on the upcoming platform will be announced in the coming weeks. Microsoft, on the other hand, plans to provide the IT infrastructure for the execution of the platform.