Mercari Launches Bitcoin Giveaway to Attract New Users

Mercari, the prominent Japanese e-commerce company, announced a new promotional campaign featuring Bitcoin (BTC) giveaways. The initiative, spearheaded by its crypto subsidiary Mercoin, aims to attract new users to its Bitcoin trading service.

According to a press release dated July 1, the campaign runs until July 31, offering 200 yen (approximately $0.12) worth of Bitcoin to both the referrer and the referred user. The promotion encourages users to invite as many people as possible, with no invitation limit. Additionally, signing up with a special code will also yield 200 yen worth of Bitcoin.

To boost the campaign’s visibility, Mercari released a commercial starring celebrities such as former pro wrestler Riki Choshu and actress-singer Haruka Shimazaki.

Mercari, although a recent entrant in Japan’s crypto exchange market, has quickly gained traction. It now claims the highest number of new cryptocurrency users in the industry, with over 2.2 million users as of May 30, according to Japan’s CoinPost. Data from the Japan Virtual and Cryptoassets Exchange Association indicates that Mercari accounted for 61.5% of all new crypto wallets opened between March 2023 and March 2024.

Since launching its Bitcoin trading service in March 2023, Mercari has integrated crypto features into its core e-commerce platform. Notably, in February, it introduced a feature allowing customers to purchase goods using Bitcoin holdings.

In addition to Bitcoin, Mercari also supports Ethereum (ETH) trading. In May, it launched a service enabling customers to exchange loyalty points for Ethereum tokens. Vendors on the platform can choose to receive ETH instead of fiat currency for their sales.

Mercoin attributed the surge in new crypto wallets to the expansion of a customer base previously unfamiliar with cryptocurrencies.