Sibiu university students can pay their fees in virtual currency now

"Lucian Blaga" University in Sibiu to allow students to pay in cryptocurrency after an agreement with a local startup

"Lucian Blaga" University in Sibiu (ULSB) will be the first university in Romania to allow the payment of admission fees in virtual currency. The cryptocurrency in which the payments will be made will be EGLD, developed by the Sibiu startup Elrond. From July, more than 11,000 students in Romania will be able to pay their university tuition fees using cryptocurrency for the first time.

This is a collaboration between the university and Elrond, a start-up that was established by a local team of academics, developers, and programmers. The company aims to build on current blockchain systems such as Bitcoin and Ethereum by using standard computers rather than high-energy processors.

Virtual currency payments to the university

In a statement, Prof. Dr. Sorin Radu, rector of ULBS, said: "Our university has been and will continue to be a supporter of the community and local businesses, and the decision to develop this partnership with Elrond is in line with this strategy".

In addition to assisting local businesses, the university stated that it was looking to streamline administrative processes through digitalisation. According to the new plans, ULBS would turn EGLD tokens into Romanian lei using a payment processor at no additional cost to students and eliminating conventional bank fees.

To increase the number of students

Although cryptocurrencies are notoriously volatile, the potential benefits of using EGLD tokens to pay for tuition may be appealing to an increasing number of students in the future, not least because of low transaction costs and public payment authentication through blockchain technology.

"We are pleased that through this collaboration we can offer students access to a technology that promises to have a significant positive impact on today's society, but also on the next generation of graduates of the Sibian university and beyond," explained Beniamin Mincu, CEO of Elrond.