Disclaimer: Of the 60,000 EV charging points reportedly supporting Bitcoin payments in Europe, a large number is still in the experimental phase, and Satimoto is yet to publish the exact number and an updated map.
With the cryptocurrency sector and its main asset, Bitcoin (BTC), moving increasingly into the mainstream, it is no surprise that it is becoming an accepted payment option in various settings, including at tens of thousands of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations across Europe.
Specifically, German start-up Satimoto currently has around 60,000 EV charge points that accept non-custodial and pseudonymous charging and payment through the Lightning network in multiple European countries, as the company stated on Twitter while sharing a part of its recent (not yet published) map on July 26.
From 24,000 to 60,000 in seven months
As it happens, the crypto community has recently started to circulate the (now outdated) Satimoto map of Bitcoin-enabled EV charging points, according to which there were 24,227 of them across several European countries in December 2022, of which 8,898 were experimental, as Satimoto was still carrying out early testing.
Although the company has not yet said how many of these 60,000 charging points are experimental at the moment, the release of an updated, full map is coming soon, Satimoto said on July 26, as it celebrated reaching 2,000 Twitter followers.
According to its team, the start-up is facing a scaling issue on its part, including in terms of server capacity and establishing contracts with operators, and some countries have more established infrastructure than others, which is why some regions are lagging in the introduction of this functionality.
Significantly, Satimoto advertises as offering Bitcoin payments for charging customers ’ electric vehicles without compromising their data with signups, credit cards, and revealing personal details, “leveraging the security of the Bitcoin protocol and the speed of the Lightning Network to stream payments.”
Meanwhile, the demand for electric cars in Europe continues to grow, having recorded more than 1 million passenger EVs registered in the first quarter of 2023, as Finbold reported in late April. This means that the demand for charging points that support Bitcoin should follow as well.
