Cardano Gets Real-World Checkout Rails in 137 Swiss Spar Stores

Switzerland’s push as a crypto-friendly hub is getting a new retail test case, with Cardano’s ADA token now usable for grocery purchases at Spar stores across the country.

Cardano (ADA) users can start paying for their groceries in 137 Spar supermarkets across Switzerland after the latest Open Crypto Pay integration from Swiss fintech firm DFX.swiss, the Cardano Foundation said Thursday.

The system is designed to process transactions in real time and allow payments directly from ADA wallets without routing through a centralized exchange. For merchants, Open Crypto pay reduces transaction costs by about two-thirds compared to traditional cards, according to the announcement.

Frederik Gregaard, the CEO of the Swiss-based Cardano Foundation, called the development the “beginning of a fundamental shift in how value moves through society,” which marks the blockchain industry’s transition from an experimental phase to “genuine financial transformation.” 

Spar first rolled out nationwide crypto and stablecoin payments in Switzerland in August 2025 for 100 stores via Binance Pay and DFX.swiss, with plans at the time to extend to 300 stores.

Related: Switzerland delays crypto tax info sharing until 2027

Tether, Lugano commit $6.4 million to global crypto hub ambitions

Separately, on Tuesday, Tether and the city of Lugano committed 5 million Swiss francs ($6.4 million) to a second phase of the city’s Plan B forum between 2026 and 2030, which aims to make Lugano a “global hub for digital asset infrastructure.”

Lugano has already allowed residents to pay certain municipal fees in Bitcoin (BTC) and USDt (USDT) as part of an effort to embed digital assets into the local economy.