This has been another busy month in the world of cryptocurrency - and here at BitPay. We continue to welcome aboard new merchants, all the while releasing new products and services that make crypto transactions easier — and more profitable than ever — for the global business community. It has been an exciting month, with new and exciting product and feature launches.
In This Issue:
BitPay In the Spotlight
- BitPay CEO, Stephen Pair, discusses the Future of Payments and Blockchain.
- BitPay CFO, Jagruti Solanki, was interviewed by PYMNTS CEO, Karen Webster. Hear what she had to say about the biggest hurdles of managing a cryptocurrency technology firm.
- BitPay VP of Marketing, Merrick Theobald, spoke to E-Crypto News about High-Value Transactions Using Cryptocurrency.
- BitPay Send was recently featured in a Cointelegraph article about Crypto and Payroll.
- BitPay Invests in American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL); Plans to Rebrand to HODL (Hodler Owned Disc League)
Other Industry News
Here’s a list of some of the most significant happenings in crypto over this past month:
- Total crypto market capitalization posts a new all-time high above $1.9T.
- PayPal Launches "Checkout with Crypto"
- Bitcoin As Alchemy: APMEX CEO Places Crypto In Precious Metal Perspective
- Goldman Sachs is close to offering bitcoin and other digital assets to its wealth management clients.
- Visa Becomes First Major Payments Network to Settle Transactions in USD Coin.
- Crypto Firms Got More Funding Last Quarter Than In All of 2020.
- Luxury hotel chain The Kessler Collection announced that it would begin accepting cryptocurrencies at eight of its high-end boutique hotels.
BitPay Bids Welcome to New Businesses
It’s our monthly pleasure - and great honor - to welcome aboard new businesses that use our products and services. This month saw BitPay woo and win over clients from across a wide-ranging number of fields and industries - everything from cat DNA testing to hotels. Please join us in saying hello to these new, exceptional members of the BitPay family!
- Arkane Network - NFT Marketplace (Online Payments)
- Basepaws - Shark Tank Approved Cat DNA Tests (Online Payments)
- Burning Man - Nonprofit Event (Online Payments)
- Gift Cash - Gift Card Marketplace (Online Payments and Payouts)
- Million Air - Private Jet Charter (Email Billing)
- Oakland A’s - MLB Team (Email Billing)
- Perk Hero - Canadian Marketplace (Online Payments)
- Raksmart - Global Data Center (Online Payments)
- The AUDL - American Ultimate Disc League (Online Payments)
- The Kessler Collection - Luxury Hotels (Email Billing)
- TSG AUTOHAUS - Luxury Auto (Email Billing)
- True Facet - Luxury Watch Marketplace (Online Payments)
BitPay Merchant Spotlight of the Month: Arkane Network Marketplace
Arkane Network was founded in 2018 to solve the complexity of blockchain technology and make it ready for mainstream adoption. Arkane does this with its blockchain agnostic, digital wallet, and NFT services for projects and blockchain games like CoinStats, NFTBank, Atari, Bondly Finance, The Sandbox, and Aavegotchi.
Arkane recently launched the Arkane.market, the very first peer-to-peer NFT marketplace on Polygon. Arkane has become a one-stop shop for everything NFT. From creating NFTs via its API solutions to having custody services until primary and secondary sale possibilities with the Arkane Market. We are excited to have them join the BitPay family!
BitPay Merchant Shout-outs:
BitPay Merchant Shout-outs:
- Burning Man’s CEO Marian Goodell just shared an important update about what’s new with Burning Man Project and Black Rock City. Check out the full video here, and read on for highlights.
What’s New With Burning Man? With CEO Marian Goodell from Burning Man on Vimeo.
- CRM Jewelers for selling a Patek 5980 (valued at more than $230k) with Bitcoin.
- Georgia Chapter of American Red Cross trying to raise money for home fire relief campaign. Learn more here.
- Oakland Athletic sells MLB’s first crypto-purchased ticket, a six-person season suite for 1 Bitcoin.
- Shark Tank investor Kevin O’Leary for bringing crypto payments (including Dogecoin) to Basepaws.com.
Word(s) of the Month: Non-Fungible Tokens
In economics, a fungible asset is something that can be readily interchanged - like money. However, if something is non-fungible then it can not be readily interchanged, such as one-of-kind pieces of art that have been deemed priceless.
Non Fungible Tokens (NFTs) are a unit of data stored on a blockchain, most popularly Ethereum, and certifies ownership and that the digital asset is unique or “non-fungible”. Basically, think of it as the equivalent of an autographed print. NFTs can be used to represent items such as photos, videos, and other types of digital assets that can be accessed through the internet. For example, bids for Jack Dorsey’s first tweet have reached $2.5 million USD. You can buy, sell, trade, and collect NFTs through marketplaces such as arkane.market.
Product Spotlight: Donations
With BitPay, you can engage a new base of cryptocurrency donors with a fast, secure, and inexpensive payment method. From setup to settlement, BitPay helps your organization accept blockchain donations. Interested in accepting blockchain donations for your organization? Contact us to find out more.
Examples of Some of Our Non-Profit Partners
- Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation - Fight Childhood Cancer
- American Red Cross - Help People in Need
- BitGive - Help Revolutionize Global Digital Philanthropy
- Care.org - Join the Fight Against Global Poverty
- Code.org - Change the World Through Computer Science
- Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation - Find a Cure for Crohn’s & Colitis
- Institute for Justice - Support Civil Liberties
- Room to Read - Invest in Childhood Literacy
We believe in continually innovating in our work to improve the lives of children worldwide. Accepting bitcoin has allowed us to bring digital and mobile innovation to our donations.
-- Ettore Rosetti, Director of Social Media and Digital Marketing for Save the Children
The Red Cross is thrilled to partner with BitPay to offer a different way for generous donors to support our humanitarian mission. This gives a new generation of supporters the opportunity to help people in need.
-- Jennifer Niyangoda, Executive Director of Corporate and Foundation Programs for the American Red Cross
Marketing Spotlight: AUDL
For April Fools, BitPay teamed up with their new partner, the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL) to prank the internet regarding their rebranding. The premise was simple: "BitPay, the world’s largest provider of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency payment services, makes strategic investment in the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL) with immediate plans to rebrand the AUDL to the HODL (Hodler Owned Disc League) as a show of support to the global crypto community.”
While the HODL was a ruse, the AUDL will, in fact, be partnering with BitPay so that fans can purchase AUDL tickets, merchandise, and more using cryptocurrencies. This marketing opportunity was a fun collaboration of social content and cross-promotion.
HODL merch is still available for a limited time! Get it before it's gone: https://shop.theaudl.com/collections/hodl
