Travala, a cryptocurrency-based online travel ticketing service, has expanded its crypto payment options to support major tokens running on the Solana blockchain.
On Sept. 21, Travala CEO Juan Otero announced an integration with Solana, a layer-1 blockchain ecosystem, during the Solana Breakpoint conference in Singapore.
The partnership allows travelers to book hotels and flights using Solana’s native token, Solana (SOL), as well as major stablecoins USDt (USDT) and USD Coin (USDC), on the Solana blockchain.
Source: Solana
The Solana blockchain is a direct competitor of Ethereum and focuses on faster and cheaper execution of smart contracts and decentralized applications (DApps).
Travala enables direct SOL deposit and withdrawals
While Travala has a history of accepting payments in Bitcoin (BTC) and numerous other cryptocurrencies, including Ether (ETH), the Solana integration allows users to deposit and withdraw the supported tokens directly on Travala accounts, with zero-fee transactions on travel bookings.
Crypto investors and enthusiasts on X rejoiced in the collaboration, hoping for a seamless travel booking experience.
Travala will also introduce SOL travel rewards in the near future.
Related: Powerledger integrates with Solana mainnet ecosystem
Solana attracts Coinbase’s wrapped Bitcoin offering
Crypto exchange Coinbase is also betting on the Solana blockchain as it revealed plans to introduce Coinbase’s new “cbBTC” — a wrapped Bitcoin asset — to the Solana network. While no exact date was announced for its launch, Coinbase’s country director for Singapore, Hassan Ahmed, said:
“We recently launched cbBTC on base, but our users love Solana, and so do we. So we are very excited to announce that we will be bringing native cbBTC to Solana as well.”
Wrapped Bitcoin products allow users to retain asset control while using Bitcoin as collateral for decentralized finance applications.
Source: Solana
Solana’s wrapped Bitcoin asset cbBTC was initially launched on the Ethereum and Base networks.
Coinbase explained that cbBTC is backed at a 1:1 ratio, with Bitcoin held by the centralized exchange, and there are no separate order books or trading pairs for cbBTC on the Coinbase platform.
Magazine: What Solana’s critics get right… and what they get wrong