TravelbyBit: In a move to try and boost tourism in Australia’s second-largest state, Queensland, the residing government has proposed it will back a local crypto payments startup using its new  ‘Advance Queensland Ignite Ideas’ grant.

What’s Going On?

On Wednesday, the Queensland government announced on its website the details of an $8.3 million AUD grant which will be given to 70 domestic companies looking to bring innovative business to the area.

Businesses focusing on cryptocurrency especially seem to have piqued the government’s interest as it specifically mentioned the Queensland-based startup TravelbyBit—a start-up that aims to sell travel experiences online using cryptocurrency. 

The government announcement described the company as “a startup company set to drive more tourists to Central Queensland by selling travel experiences online using cryptocurrency.”

Minister Kate Jones said regarding TravelbyBit:

“Tourism is one of Queensland’s most important industries. TravelbyBit has devised a clever way to make it easier for visitors to our state to pay for their purchases with a growing number of local businesses accepting cryptocurrency payments.”

What is TravelbyBit?

TravelbyBit is the creator behind a point-of-sale cryptocurrency payments app, which is currently in use in Agnes Water, a beach-side tourist town slowly gaining the reputation of being Australia’s first ‘digital currency town.’

So much so, that the town’s Welcome sign posts Bitcoin (available on Coinbase), Bitcoin (available on Coinbase) Cash, NEM, Litecoin (available on Coinbase), and Ethereum (available on Coinbase) as the five cryptocurrencies currently accepted as payment in the town.

TravelbyBit currently has over 30 local businesses using its payment app in this town, but it boasts a further 120 merchants using the PoS crypto-friendly platform elsewhere across Australia.

The grant will give the app leverage to expand further; the company is set to receive $100,000 AUD.