General Motors Considering Payments With Bitcoin

General Motors is considering bitcoin as an acceptable form of payment for its vehicles.

According to a recent report from Reuters, General Motors joins a growing list of major companies investigating regular implementation of the popular cryptocurrency.

Tesla is particularly aggressive in this regard, with Tesla boss Elon Musk recently announcing via Twitter that customers can now purchase Tesla vehicles using bitcoin. Back in February, Tesla purchased some $1.5 billion worth of bitcoin to provide the EV maker with liquidity ahead of accepting the cryptocurrency for payments.

Musk has been particularly vocal in his support for bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, frequently posting his support to social media, driving up prices as a result. One bitcoin is valued at $55,346.10 as of this writing.

Other major companies have also expressed interest in bitcoin, including Bank of New York Mellon, MasterCard. Microsoft and AT&T already allow customers to pay using the cryptocurrency.

Last month, during GM’s Q4 2020 earnings call, General Motors CEO Mary Barra said that the automaker had no plans to invest in bitcoin, but would continue to evaluate whether further interest was warranted.

“We don’t have any plans to invest in bitcoin, so full stop there,” Barra said when asked about GM’s interest in the cryptocurrency. “This is something we’ll monitor, and we’ll evaluate, and if there’s strong customer demand for it in the future, there’s nothing that precludes us from doing that.”

For now, bitcoin remains on the fringes of financing, but with greater support from major companies like Tesla and General Motors, that could quickly change.

General Motors has already invested in blockchain, the technology behind cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, with patents that leverage the tech for use in data management for autonomous vehicles. Further applications for the technology include use in electric vehicle charging grids, with greater security for personal data when compared to existing systems. In 2019, GM Financial announced that it had entered a partnership with blockchain startup Spring Labs.

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Jonathan is an automotive journalist based out of Southern California. He loves anything and everything on four wheels.

Jonathan Lopez

Jonathan is an automotive journalist based out of Southern California. He loves anything and everything on four wheels.

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