Luxury Brands Consider Accepting Crypto Payments

With bitcoin rising, the luxury world is reportedly showing more interest in allowing cryptocurrency payments.

As Reuters reported Wednesday (Dec. 18), until recently just a handful of brands — including Gucci and LVMH watch labels Hublot and Tag Heuer — had permitted crypto payments. But now, with the price of bitcoin hitting record highs, others are entering the crypto space.

For example, the French luxury department store Printemps recently teamed with Binance to accept crypto payments, a first for European department stores, the report said. Other brands and retailers have indicated a desire to follow suit.

“There have been quite a few calls — it’s generated interest,” said David Princay, president of Binance France, who said the exchange is in talks with other luxury labels.

Meanwhile, luxury lighter and pen maker S.T. Dupont told Reuters it plans to accept crypto payments in two Paris stores before the holidays.

It’s not just retailers. Earlier this month, cruise company Virgin Voyages began accepting bitcoin as a payment option for anyone willing to spend $120,000 on an annual pass.

PYMNTS explored this topic last month, writing that brands like Rolex and Ferrari “have embraced the ability to allow customers to buy luxury watches and cars with bitcoin or ethereum,” the two most popular cryptocurrencies.

Platforms like BitPay — in the interest of streamlining crypto transactions — are increasingly working with merchants such as Ralph Lauren, AMC Theaters and New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, along with charitable organizations, like the American Cancer Society and American Red Cross.

This is happening at a time when bitcoin is hitting record highs — it surpassed $108,000 on Tuesday (Dec. 17) — and the luxury sector is suffering from sluggish sales.

At the same time, crypto payments remain a new territory for many consumers.

“Businesses should clearly communicate the steps involved, including which cryptocurrencies are accepted and any applicable fees,” PYMNTS wrote last month. “Offering educational resources or support channels can ease customer adoption.”

As crypto adoption increases, keeping on top of regulatory changes is also something that could be critical for consumers and merchants.

“The main barrier to widespread stablecoin adoption outside of the crypto ecosystem is the lack of regulatory frameworks,” Tony McLaughlin, emerging payments at Citi Services, told PYMNTS last month.

Beyond that, the PYMNTS Intelligence report “Blockchain’s Benefits for Regulated Industries” found that blockchain technology, the key technology underpinning cryptocurrencies and digital assets, could have potential in regulated industries like health and finance.