More than 20 merchants in Madrid’s busiest shopping district will open for a Bitcoin Boulevard-style event today.
While streets in Arnhem, The Hague and Cleveland have all hosted similar bitcoin awareness initiatives, organiser Félix Montero says his event, Calle Bitcoin, will be the world’s biggest yet.
Around 200 bitcoin users are expected to attend the two-day spectacle, which is to feature a pub crawl, treasure hunt and photo competition, alongside giveaways in the digital currency.
While Spain’s bitcoin community is small, Montero hopes the outdoor event will showcase the currency’s purchasing power and utility to those in the “offline” world.
“We thought a bitcoin street was the best way to prove that bitcoin payments stand up even to the pressure of a crowded bar or shop in speed and flexibility,” he said.
Gold mile
The ‘calle’ itself is located at luxury shopping hotspot Serrano Street – also known as the city’s ‘Gold Mile’.Besides the usual coffee shops, bars and restaurants, the 1.5 km area also features an international fashion boutique, a design hotel, an architect practice and – bizarrely – a gynaecologist.
Montero explained:
“Once merchants saw that the bar next door was sporting a ‘Bitcoin Accepted Here’ sticker they lost all fear and wanted in!”
Experimental event
The event is largely experimental, involving all kinds of payment mechanisms, apps and processors, both better- and lesser-known, Montero said.Though BitPay, Blockchain and Coinbase are ‘gold’ sponsors, smaller regional startups such as Coinffeine, Avatar BTC and Bitcoin Spain, owner of the country’s first Robocoin ATM, will be out in force to greet passers-by.
Read more:
http://www.coindesk.com/spains-bitcoin-boulevard-aims-worlds-biggest-best/
