Megan McCarty Carino

This is APM.

There's a Swiss city where you can get by almost entirely on Bitcoin.

From American Public Media, this is Marketplace Tech.

I'm Megan McCarty Carino.

The picturesque Swiss lakeside town of Lugano is positioning itself as Europe's Bitcoin capital.

In 2022, the city launched Plan B, aiming to attract crypto companies and Bitcoin currency itself to the city.

You can still pay for everything in Swiss francs, of course, but in hundreds of shops and restaurants, you can also pay in Bitcoin.

The city has even started accepting it to pay for municipal services.

The BBC's John Lawrenson went to check it out.

We'll be right back.

You're listening to Marketplace Tech.

I'm Megan McCarty Carino.

We're back with the BBC's John Lawrenson in Lugano, Switzerland.

That was the BBC's John Lawrenson.

I'm Megan McCarty Carino, and that's Marketplace Tech.

This is APM.

It's been a whiplash year for the electric vehicle market in the U.S.

From American Public Media, this is Marketplace Tech.

I'm Megan McCarty Carino.

2025 brought some new speed bumps for electric vehicle sales, namely the Republicans' One Big Beautiful Bill Act.