Nine months into its big push for cryptocurrency payments, Bhutan isn’t finding many takers for its plans.
Last May, Bhutan became the first country to launch a nationwide crypto payment network for tourists. Visitors to the Himalayan kingdom could pay for their visas, flights, hotels, and meals in more than 100 cryptocurrencies via Binance. Within the first month of its launch, over 1,000 merchants signed up to receive payments in crypto.
Almost a year on, though, nothing much has changed on the ground.
In Thimphu, the QR codes displayed by local businesses to receive crypto payments gather dust. Several merchants have never had any customers opt for them.
“It has been four to five months, but no customer has…





