Gucci now accepts ApeCoin cryptocurrency in select US stores

BitPay wallet users can now shop from brands like Gucci and TAG Heuer using ApeCoin

By Shashank Bhardwaj

Image: Shutterstock

Gucci, the renowned Italian fashion house, announced on Twitter that ApeCoin will now be accepted for purchases at select stores in the United States. ApeCoin is one of the most famous crypto assets by the Bored Ape Yacht Club.

On August 2, the luxury fashion brand announced on Twitter, "Now accepting @ApeCoin payments via @BitPay, select Gucci boutiques in the USA expand the range of cryptocurrencies available for in-store purchases, yet another step in the House's exploration of Web3."

Gucci will be the first retailer to accept ApeCoin (APE) payments via BitPay. BitPay is the largest Bitcoin and crypto payment service provider in the world. BitPay is expanding the number of supported crypto assets that it accepts for payment in its US locations with this move. Within the BitPay Wallet app, customers can purchase, store, exchange, and spend ApeCoin (APE) and Euro Coin (EUROC). Businesses that use BitPay other than Gucci can now accept ApeCoin and Euro Coin as payment methods from any crypto wallet.

Stephen Pair, the BitPay CEO, said in a statement, "We added ApeCoin and Euro Coin because customers of our luxury merchant partners asked for it…They asked, and we delivered."

Further, after Gucci’s announcement, ApeCoin took its official Twitter account to enhance the hype, "Excited to announce that @Gucci will become the first major brand to allow customers to pay for purchases in-store with ApeCoin, via @BitPay."

So far, the BAYC community appears to have shown strong support for Gucci's crypto moves. A Twitter user (@NBATopShotEast) and ApeCoin user (@NBATopShotEast) claimed to be the first person to pay for Gucci items in ETH at the brand's Wooster Street location in New York City in July, and he hopes to be the first APE user as well.

This is not Gucci's first foray into the world of Web3. The fashion label made an NFT video of its Aria fashion collection, which sold for $25,000 at Christie's Proof of Sovereignty auction in 2021. It debuted its own 10KTF: Gucci Grail Mint Pass collection in March 2022. It allowed holders to create personalised NFT profile pictures or PFP outfits based on 11 of the most popular NFT projects at the time. Prior to ApeCoin, Gucci accepted 12 crypto assets as payment methods across 111 North American stores. Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin, Ethereum, Wrapped Bitcoin, Litecoin, Shiba Inu, Dogecoin, and five stablecoins pegged to the US dollar are among them.

As a result of this news, the price of the latest Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT collection has risen.

Despite growing bearish sentiments in the crypto market, ApeCoin is now trading above a critical support level. According to experts, ApeCoin's market value would increase by 50 percent. TAG Heuer joined Gucci in welcoming payments in the APE token with a tweet of its own. The Swiss watchmaker has already incorporated the NFTs from Bored Ape into the design of its Calibre E4. It will now be possible for customers in the United States to purchase watches using APE.

Shashank is the founder at yMedia. He ventured into crypto in 2013 and is an ETH maximalist.

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