Insurance giant AXA allows Swiss consumers to pay their premiums using Bitcoin.

Insurance giant AXA (AXA) now allows Swiss consumers to pay for their insurance using Bitcoin. AXA announced that it is the world's largest insurance group and the first fully-fledged insurance company in Switzerland to accept Bitcoin for a fee.

At the end of 2019, AXA interviewed young people aged 18 and 55 about their feelings about crypto-currencies. This study shows that many respondents are already enjoying digital benefits and Covid-19 has accelerated this demand and interest.

AXA customers will soon see new payment options on their email invoices and Invoice.inapay.ch/axa. You can then make your Bitcoin payment on your desktop or smartphone. According to the company, "customers who receive their postage or directly from Myaxa can also use this new option to pay their bills."

“New technologies have played an even more important role,” said Claudia Bienentreu, Swiss Innovation Director at AXA.

Bienentreu said AXA's decision "is a response to growing consumer demand for alternative solutions" as the role of new technologies increases.

The company announced that it currently has no Bitcoin on its balance sheet and has partnered with the Swiss Bitcoin cryptocurrency exchange, which has helped insurance companies convert BTC to Swiss francs. It also works with the inapay Bitcoin mobile payment processor to maintain a user interface for payments.

Interestingly, the company doesn't charge for this new payment method. However, Bitcoin Switzerland charges 1.75% for this exchange.

AXA has stated that over time other payment methods such as TWINT will continue to be used in the future. AXA concludes that “in the future, the various payment options and services available on the Internet and the Myaxa application will continue to develop”.