Bitcoin Daily: Travala.com Combines With TravelbyBit; France Tests Blockchain-Operational Digital Euro

Blockchain-based lodging reservation platform Travala.com has unveiled a merger with TravelbyBit, a Binance-backed “cryptocurrency-friendly” flight reservation site, according to an announcement on Wednesday (May 20).

Travala.com CEO Juan Otero said in the announcement, “We couldn’t be more excited to join forces with TravelbyBit, which is backed by Binance and have constantly been achieving and pushing crypto adoption by providing blockchain-based online travel booking services.”

The firms will cross-market each of their travel services as the initial step of the merger. AVA, the native digital currency of Travala.com, will fuel the merged platform “with the added utility of flight bookings,” per the announcement.

In other news, France has become the first nation to test out a blockchain-operational digital euro with successful results, Banque de France announced on Wednesday (May 20).

The current experimental effort is reportedly geared toward wholesale uses for a digital euro instead of retail. The institution noted per the report that it tried out a central bank digital currency (CBDC) sale of securities in mid-May. Additionally, the recent test of securities issuance was said to be based on technology received after the bank’s call for applications in late March.

The bank, for its part, is particularly active in creating a digital euro, according to a Cointelgraph report.

Meanwhile, Luno, a digital currency platform backed by Naspers Ltd., is reportedly in discussions regarding growing in Ghana as well as Kenya to broaden its presence in Africa as bitcoin surged over the last two months during the pandemic, Bloomberg reported.

Luno General Manager Marius Reitz told the outlet, “It’s markets we have a keen interest in, and Ghana and Kenya are high on our list.”

Luno was started seven years ago and now counts 4 million users among its ranks. The exchange, for its part, trades ethereum and bitcoin, among other digital currencies. It now has staffers spread throughout seven offices in Aisa, Europe and Africa.