What if you could pay with Bitcoin — but anywhere? PlebQR is the killer Bitcoin app in Thailand. An incredible alignment of different interests: one pleb wants to buy something in a store with Bitcoin, another pleb wants to stack sats. PlebQR is a pleb-to-pleb Bitcoin exchange that's basically unstoppable. The platform connects product buyers with Bitcoin stackers. Here's how it works: you (the Bitcoiner buying a product) scan the ubiquitous Thai fiat QR payment code and upload it to the PlebQR platform. You then pay a Lightning invoice, wait 1-2 minutes for a match, and some pleb out there looking to buy BTC pays your fiat QR and receives your Bitcoin. Everybody happy. I just bought a pair of sandals and a shirt and some guy got to stack my non-KYC sats at a pretty good rate. I love Bitcoin when it shines like this. Bitcoin is the money of the future and we don't need the old world's permission to make it work. Big respect to the Thai Bitcoiner community. image

Replies (41)

We have something similar in Poland - @BitBlik It works more or less the same, but is built on the Blik system that's very popular here in Poland. The only difference is that it uses 6-digit codes instead of QRs.
In Poland (come for @Bitcoin FilmFest in June!) you can spend sats anywhere using @BitBlik. Tell the merchant that you want to pay with blik and use the app. There is literally a race between takers for every offer that comes up, even though there's still only handful of users. Usually it takes seconds for the offer to be taken and 1-2 minutes to be settled. We like non-KYC corn here.
The_Crin's avatar
The_Crin 2 weeks ago
well, isn't this better than having to buy bitcoin in places where they ask for KYC?
This is fucking cool. Want to buy something with BTC at a store that doesn't accept BTC? No problem, ring up a proxy buyer who wants the BTC and is willing to pay the store for you in fiat. It says that it only takes a couple of minutes to find a match. This kind of system would be perfect for Monero, then the risk of unknowingly acquring dirty coins would be eliminated. View quoted note →
Alvaro's avatar
Alvaro 2 weeks ago
Pretty amazing. Wouldn’t it be better though (for opsec and tax reduction) that the fiat pleb pays the fiat bill, and the bitcoin pleb sends the bitcoin to the fiat pleb?
I'm totally for it, I'm just trying to understand how you can be in a checkout line and once the cashier presents you with a bill, you have to wait 1-2 minutes to pay. Otherwise I think the idea is brilliant. I wonder if this could be applied to online purchases. If I want something off from Amazon, and someone else wants my sats, this would seem to work great.
It's early days but amazing! +1min is too slow at POS but get that down to 30s ... on self checkout counters ... with higher success rate, that's viable! image
What's that? You have a taker in seconds but he then spends minutes to execute? That needs automation. Fiat payers should have median time to execute measured so bitcoiners can filter slow agents.
There was a platform called purse.io that did a similar thing. It was over Amazon though. I liked it a lot and it worked pretty well. It's no longer around, for whatever reason...
magnum's avatar
magnum 2 weeks ago
Let’s do this. Love to hear of bitcoin adoption. Especially in Thailand.
Crypto News's avatar
Crypto News 2 weeks ago
calle's avatar calle
What if you could pay with Bitcoin — but anywhere? PlebQR is the killer Bitcoin app in Thailand. An incredible alignment of different interests: one pleb wants to buy something in a store with Bitcoin, another pleb wants to stack sats. PlebQR is a pleb-to-pleb Bitcoin exchange that's basically unstoppable. The platform connects product buyers with Bitcoin stackers. Here's how it works: you (the Bitcoiner buying a product) scan the ubiquitous Thai fiat QR payment code and upload it to the PlebQR platform. You then pay a Lightning invoice, wait 1-2 minutes for a match, and some pleb out there looking to buy BTC pays your fiat QR and receives your Bitcoin. Everybody happy. I just bought a pair of sandals and a shirt and some guy got to stack my non-KYC sats at a pretty good rate. I love Bitcoin when it shines like this. Bitcoin is the money of the future and we don't need the old world's permission to make it work. Big respect to the Thai Bitcoiner community. image
View quoted note →
Satoji's avatar
Satoji 2 weeks ago
This is an amazing idea! I always knew that this FIAT QR-Code payments are good for something. :-)
As a taker I receive a notification almost instantly, when the order is created. From the moment I take the order, I have 45 s to provide the code. This is just enough time to get the code from the bank app and paste it to the offer, while switching between the apps. The maker receives the code and provides it to the merchant – verbally or by entering it to the POS device. This works basically everywhere now, also online, also in ATMs. Many brick and mortar shops have self-service checkouts. At what point could it be improved, in your opinion?
PhⒶntom's avatar
PhⒶntom 2 weeks ago
That is bonkers 🤣 And I love it Coming up with ideas like that is soooo cool.
I am realizing that a taker/scammer could take an order and use the code to withdraw the money from an ATM right before providing the code to the maker. It would be difficult to prove the scam because the taker could show proof from his bank that the money was withdrawn. It seems especially risky with orders of round figures in PLN that can be withdrawn at the ATM. @BitBlik Is there any way to prevent this kind of scam?
This could be discouraged with reputation mechanism but it seems that the app encourages creating a new identity for every order, which impedes establishing reputation.
Satoji's avatar
Satoji 1 week ago
Is it possible to integrate that to NOSTR? - i publish my fiat qr code - someone random pays for it - gets my btc - we rate each other Integrated in a zap wallet inside a nostr client: - i want to buy some sats for my wallet - my wallet shows me: „3 seconds ago someone offered 5.600 Sats because he is about to pay for his chai latte, do you want to make this deal and send some fiat?“ - i press hell yes and get my sats Is this achievable?
Yes. The maker will receive a receipt from the ATM showing that the BLIK code is invalid (if the taker/scammer did use it already).
We will have reputation mode also in the future, when we fully implement @npub1m0st...40un protocol, so user will be able to choose. Also planned is choice of offer type: physical store/ ATM / ecommerce good / online bill payments.