Binance Pay Links With Bhutan QR Network for Crypto Payments at 3,700 Merchants

Binance Pay has connected into Bhutan’s domestic QR payment network through DK Bank, letting customers spend crypto at more than 3,700 merchants without businesses installing new hardware.

The integration, announced Aug. 17, lets users open the Binance app, scan an existing DK Bank Domestic QR code at a shop, and enter the amount in Bhutanese ngultrum. The payment settles in USDT, Tether’s dollar-linked stablecoin, through an automatic foreign-exchange conversion. Merchants keep their existing QR codes.

SB Seker, Binance’s head of Asia-Pacific, said the setup shows crypto adoption can work by fitting into payment systems consumers already know. Ugyen Tenzin, DK Bank’s country CEO for Bhutan and Gelephu Mindfulness City, said the bank added crypto functionality without disrupting the merchant infrastructure already in place.

The rollout follows a national tourism payment pilot Bhutan started in May with more than 100 merchants. Tourism drives a big share of Bhutan’s economy, and the QR network is already embedded in travel, accommodation, restaurants and retail. For international visitors, spending from a crypto balance while merchants stay on the same domestic rail reduces a cross-border friction.

Seker said the model could become a template for other tourism-dependent economies exploring digital-asset payments.

From Binance’s side, the push fits a broader strategy of connecting crypto wallets with existing QR systems. The company said its global merchant footprint passed 21 million by March, and its local QR network processed $40 million in its first year. In May, Binance said it planned to expand this model to at least 10 countries by the third quarter of 2026.