Balenciaga Announces Bitcoin Payments

Balenciaga recently announced plans to accept Bitcoin and certain cryptocurrencies as both in-store and online forms of payment. According to a report from Women's Wear Daily, the fashion house stands undecided on who they will use as a payment solutions provider, but Bitcoin and Ethereum will be among the first accepted digital currencies.

Balenciaga is currently owned by Kering Luxury Group and has 34 brick-and-mortar locations in the U.S. alone. Its primary retail locations on Madison Avenue in New York and Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, California, will be the first locations to begin accepting these new forms of payment. The brand's website will begin introducing the new payment options as well. Additional details are said to be released on a later date. 

In a statement addressing the market's volatility, the Kering-owned company said, “Balenciaga is thinking long-term about crypto, and fluctuations in currency value are nothing new.”

Balenciaga is just one of the growing number of brands looking to accept alternative payment methods and is the second Kering-owned company to do so. The first was Gucci followed by French luxury goods conglomerate, Tag Heuer. 

Both Gucci and Tag Heuer announced their plans to accept Bitcoin and cryptocurrency earlier this month. Gucci will perform a pilot run in select locations and has announced plans to accept ten cryptocurrencies by the end of May. 

Similary, Tag Heuer, will begin accepting Bitcoin and cryptocurrency via its e-commerce platform and will allow consumers to checkout using up to 12 different digital currencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Dogecoin. Its solutions provider will be BitPay which was founded in May 2011 by Toni Gallippi and Stephen Pair.