Queensland, Australia Invests Portion of its $6.1Mil Ignite Ideas Fund in Crypto Startup

“Tourism is one of Queensland’s most important industries,” Innovation Minister Kate Jones announced. “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.” The company was chosen as part of a larger government initiative, the Advance Queensland Ignite Ideas funding.

Minister Jones continues, “Ignite Ideas was about supporting entrepreneurs from across Queensland to grow their businesses and employ more staff. I understand TravelbyBit is specifically targeting places like Bundaberg – using cryptocurrency to make it easier for tourists to book holidays. That’s why we’ve invested to help them scale-up their operation and ultimately create more jobs in Queensland.”

Queensland, Australia is the country’s third biggest state by population. This week, it posted details regarding the AUD$8.3 million grant ($6.1 million USD). Something like 70 regional companies shared the bounty.

Travelbybit has a point of sale payments application popular with local businesses, restaurants, tour companies, and resorts. It services bitcoin cash (BCH), bitcoin core (BTC), litecoin, ethereum, and NEM. The company has been awarded AUD$100,000 from Ignite Ideas in the hope it will expand even beyond its current stable of merchants.

Travelbybit CEO Caleb Yeoh noted, “We have more than 150 merchants across Australia using our system and this funding, to develop a purpose-built platform that will accept digital currencies from anywhere in the world, will allow us to add jobs not only directly to our team but also across the broader tourism industry.”