The luxury brand is partnering with crypto exchange company, CEX.IO, to enable payments with Bitcoin, Ethereum and other verifiable digital currencies.
Jacob & Co. is the first luxury watch and jewelry brand that will accept cryptocurrency as payment. It has partnered with crypto exchange company, CEX.IO, to provide the platform to accept purchases using Bitcoin, Ethereum and other verifiable digital currencies for Jacob & Co.’s bold and innovative offerings, such as the Astronomia and Twin Turbo Furious timepieces and high jewels with exceptional gems and craftsmanship.
Benjamin Arabov, CEO of Jacob & Co., says that being first in this space is nothing new for Jacob & Co. For 35 years the luxury brand has been a disruptive force in the jewelry and watch industry creating groundbreaking watches and having a vital influence on style and fashion on a global scale.
“Jacob & Co is known to be innovative using new technology to create never before seen timepieces and jewelry. Crypto adoption is inevitable, and the technology behind it can’t be ignored. We felt it was the right time to support innovative technology that will soon be used globally across multiple different sectors,” Arabov said.
CEX.IO – with offices in UK, US, Gibraltar, Cyprus, and Ukraine – works with several brands to enable cryptocurrency payments, including media platforms and consumer product companies. Arabov said he chose CEX.IO because of its stellar reputation in this new currency market. “CEX.IO is a trusted and internationally known crypto currency exchange that is on pace to process more than $14 billion in crypto transactions in 2021. We selected CEX.IO because of their positive reputation and credibility in the space.”
Konstantin Anissimov, executive director of CEX.IO, says that Jacob & Co. is the perfect brand to enter this new financial world.
“Jacob & Co. certainly stands out as a premium brand with passion for creativity and finding solutions priorly deemed impossible. It combines immense precision in its craft, continuous innovation, and bold choices in its design. This approach is close to our hearts at CEX.IO. We work in technology which has little room for mistakes. At the same time, we innovate on the very exciting frontier of finance which demands out-of-the-box thinking,”
Anissimov adds: “To our best knowledge Jacob & Co. is the first luxury watch brand to enable crypto payments.” Anissimov explains making crypto payment through the CEX.IO exchange is quite simple, requiring few steps. First the person selects the cryptocurrency to be used for payment. A price estimate is shown which is an equivalent of an item’s price. The person then scans the QR code to send the payment in crypto. If done properly, CEX.IO account managers will confirm the correctness of the transaction and finalize the sale.
The value of cryptocurrencies has skyrocketed in the 11 years that the first cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, began trading. The cryptocurrency market cap surpassed $2 trillion in April, doubling in value since February. Anissimov says the new currency is not only here to stay but is expanding into the consumer retail sector. “There is a huge and growing community of people who use crypto and even earn their primary income in crypto. This offers a large audience for e-commerce companies. It is only logical that cryptocurrency is and will be expanding more into consumer retail. Accepting crypto as a payment can help expand market share for retailers and facilitate the transformation of the ecommerce at large.”
In fact, Anissimov says, it has similarities with credit cards when it comes to public acceptance. “From a niche payment method, cards won a wide adoption for their speed and convenience. Similarly, crypto payments initially gained momentum as a fast and secure method for cross-border payments,” he said. “Cryptocurrencies can prove efficient to streamline the purchase process. The underlying blockchain technology can satisfy the consumers’ demand for speed and security.”
For Arabov, he sees this new financial frontier as another way to be in close contact with Jacob & Co. clients, many of whom are the cryptocurrency users.
“Our clients come to us because they appreciate the innovation and creativity behind our watches and jewels. That’s because they live their lives on the cutting edge of what life has to offer. Crypto is no different. They trade in crypto and enjoy its benefits. I think it is important that we should be in this space as well.
