(MARCH 11, 2016 – COPENHAGEN AND MØRKØV, DENMARK) Leading blockchain currency payment service provider, Coinify ApS, facilitate the first real estate purchase in Denmark made using a blockchain currency.
A 117 bitcoin transaction worth 290,000DKK (approx. 436,600USD) was recently processed by Coinify merchant services to facilitate the purchase of a property in the town of Mørkøv in the north-west part of Zealand. The Just-Sold group real estate agency signed up for a Coinify merchant account upon the buyer’s request, to be able to accept the blockchain payment.
Jesper Jørgensen, Managing Director at Just-Sold
Just-Sold CEO Jesper Jørgensen said: “We are very satisfied being the first real estate company in the Nordics using a blockchain currency in a real estate purchase. As an innovative company it is only natural for us being open to new technology and taking innovative steps – also within payment methods. It is a part of our business DNA.” The proud new house owner (name withheld for privacy) is an early bitcoin adopter, who has acquired the bitcoins throughout an extensive period of bitcoin mining.
Although Coinify has facilitated thousands of blockchain currency payments across the globe, a request from an individual to support the processing of a real estate property purchase, stood out as a great opportunity to demonstrate yet another use case for bitcoin. Besides processing the payment, the Coinify team also assisted with compliance aspects of the transaction.
Joosep Vahtras, Coinify’s Compliance Officer
Comparing the advantages of bitcoin transactions over those made with cash, Joosep Vahtras, Compliance Officer at Coinify commented: “Whenever there are so called large cash transactions with traditional currency, there are always questions regarding the source of funds. According to Anti Money Laundering rules, a person must disclose the origin of assets when purchasing for more than the equivalent of 100.000 DKK (15.000 EUR).”
For real estate agencies like JUST-SOLD or even the authorities, information regarding source of funds are often difficult to verify or disprove. With a physical cash deposit to a bank account, it is almost impossible to prove the origin and with bank transfers it is only the ‘one step backwards’ that can be traced. Joosep Vahtras explained: “Since banks operate with closed ledgers a great amount of resources are required for obtaining the information in midst of the bureaucracy and customer privacy. In comparison, Bitcoin as a payment system uses open public ledgers that are transparent and easily accessible for everyone.” With that being said, the misconception of Bitcoin being anonymous shall be refuted. Quite the contrary – Bitcoin is very transparent and several compliance businesses using the blockchain technology exist. “We use Chainalysis. Their product allows us to track the prospective buyer’s previous wallets and transactions in a matter of few clicks”, Joosep Vahtras added.
Image credits: Coinify, Just-Sold
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