Italian high-end fashion giant Gucci is the first major brand to accept payments in Bored Ape Yacht Club affiliated ApeCoin (APE).
The move was announced on August 1, and could provide the ApeCoin project significant mainstream exposure along with more usability for the cryptocurrency.
United States (US) Gucci customers can now purchase in-store items using APE, while payment infrastructure is provided by BitPay, a company that has helped big names such as AMC Theaters accept crypto payments in the past.
Excited to announce that @Gucci becomes the first major brand to enable customers to pay for in-store purchases with ApeCoin, via @BitPay. https://t.co/ipoeW6lXLl
— ApeCoin (@apecoin) August 2, 2022
Despite the lingering crypto bear market, the fashion brand has taken a serious plunge into the crypto sector this year.
In February, Gucci launched the “SUPERGUCCI” NFT collection in collaboration with X toy brand SUPERPLASTIC. The following month, Gucci then rolled out the “Gucci Grail” NFT collection aimed at owners of top NFT projects like the BAYC.
In May, the company then announced plans to accept 12 crypto assets as payment methods in 111 stores in North America. The list included Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Ether (ETH), Wrapped Bitcoin (wBTC), Litecoin (LTC), Shiba Inu (SHIB), Dogecoin (DOGE), and five US dollar stablecoins.
BAYC collectors appear to have shown strong support for Gucci’s crypto movements thus far, with @NBATopShotEast claiming to be the first person to pay for Gucci items in ETH in July at the brand’s Wooster location in New York City. While two more BAYC members claimed to be the second and third person to do so.
In response to the latest APE announcement, @NBATopShotEast outlined plans to once again be the first person to use the item at the Wooster Gucci store.
Lucky to be Gucci’s first ever crypto user in the store… I also hope to be the first Apecoin user in the store https://t.co/mNdG9oSJPi
— NBA Top Shot East Coast Podcast (@NBATopShotEast) August 2, 2022
The Apecoin Community
APE was launched in March earlier this year with great anticipation. Its associated Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) and governance community has remained highly engaged ever since, overseeing key decisions such as vetoing a proposal to transition APE from Ethereum to a new blockchain in June.
Last month, the DAO voted in favor of some notable proposals, such as exploring the feasibility of hosting an NFT conference and festival and providing APE funding for the BoredApeGazette to become a 24-hour news site. As the project works to roll out APE strike in response to strong community pressure.
ApeCoin fam – we hear you about staking. It’s important and something we want to do well. We are currently finalizing details that will serve as the basis for a broader update of our progress in accordance with AIPs-21&22. Expect more frequent updates and collaboration soon. pic.twitter.com/jKi8fZuaqd
— ApeCoin (@apecoin) July 22, 2022
At the time of writing, APE costs $6.74 after pumping 11.4% in the past seven days. APE has seen a strong rebound of late, partly due to positive developments in the affiliated Otherside Metaverse project, with the price rising 49.1% in the past month.
Related: Tiffany & Co Turns CryptoPunk NFTs Into $50K Custom Pendants
Its current market cap of approximately $2.06 billion makes APE the thirty-third largest asset in crypto, but APE is still 74.8% below its all-time high of $26.70 on April 28.
