Yesterday, Overstock.com became the first big online retailer to accept bitcoin as a form of payment, making good on an announcement last month that it would take the digital currency by the end of 2014. The first purchase, apparently, was a $2,700 patio set. Overstock CEO Patrick Byrne says he believes bitcoin will account for just one percent of his company’s sales in 2014.
It’s not the first time a company has attempted mainstream retail sales with digital currency: a service called Bitspend launched last year with hopes allowing users to make bitcoin purchases at any online store by acting as a middleman, but crashed and burned shortly after getting off the ground.
“There’s clearly a huge community of people who support this. Our customer service lines are going nuts with people who appreciate this,” Byrne told Forbes.
A DNAinfo roundup of NYC businesses that accept bitcoin as a form of payment includes two bars: Old Man Hustle on Essex Street in the Lower East side, and EVR in Midtown near Bryant Park. Cryptocurrencies are here to stay and that's that," says Mike Jarmuz, owner of Old Man Hustle. "Bitcoins are fun.…
Now that Dogecoin is dead, you'll need another cyrptocurrency based on a pop cultural meme in which to invest all your hard-earned money. Enter Coinye, a totally-not-a-joke digital currency based on Yeezus himself. In an interview with Noisey, Coinye's creators say they're interested in reaching users who wouldn't otherwise be…
Steps from the New York Stock Exchange, in a storefront plastered with signs, lies a considerably smaller financial institution. This is the New York City Bitcoin Center, a startup company devoted to educating the masses about the ballyhooed cryptocurrency and making some cash while doing it. The center, which opened…
