At the end of July 2021, many mainstream media announced that Amazon could soon start accepting Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies on its platform. This news sent Bitcoin to the moon and some started to speculate about the possibility of an Amazon token launch.
But then, in a statement to Reuters, an Amazon spokesperson denied the report, saying that "despite our interest in the space, speculation that has ensued around our specific plans for cryptocurrencies has not is not true".
Everything seems to be clear, but if you dig deeper, the story itself seems a little sketchy.
On July 22, Amazon posted a job posting for "Digital Currency and Blockchain Product Manager". This event was highlighted by many news portals, including Business Insider, Coindesk and others. In its article, Business Insider suggested that Amazon may soon allow users to pay with cryptocurrencies.
But some have gone even further. City AM, his newspaper distributed for free on the London Underground, managed to find someone who said that Amazon was "definitely" aligning bitcoin payments by the end of the year. This anonymous "insider" is also confident that Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash and Cardano will be added soon after Bitcoin as a payment method on Amazon.
According to the "insider", Amazon is even planning to launch its token. Sure, this all sounds promising, but there was the following quote – “It starts with Bitcoin – this is the first key step in this crypto project, and the directive came from the top…Jeff Bezos himself. .
And here is a small problem. Jeff Bezos is no longer the CEO of Amazon. Yes, he is still Executive Chairman, but that does not give him the power to make such significant structural changes, especially since the recent appointment of a new CEO.
After Amazon denied this story, City AM published another article linking Amazon's interest in Bitcoin to increased institutional investor interest in the crypto market. This was followed by other plays, where the writers were confident in the words of "the insider". Additionally, they expected Amazon to provide a rebuttal. Amazon has yet to describe what the vacancy means, fueling speculation.
Believing the words of an "insider" or Amazon's position is everyone's business. But the reaction of the crypto market is a fact. On June 26, when the Business Insider and City AM articles were published, the price of Bitcoin jumped over 15%. When Amazon denied the story, the price of Bitcoin fell more than 6%.
While other factors have also affected the price movement, Amazon's story has always sparked heated discussion in the community. On June 26, the trading volume in the Bitcoin spot market doubled. But when the price started falling after the rebuttal, the trading volume started falling.
In 2014, when many people were looking for how to buy crypto with a credit/debit card after the rally, Amazon's head of payments confirmed that the company was considering Bitcoin as a new payment method on the platform. But after some research, the company said there is not enough demand for crypto from its audience to embrace it.
Amazon's Bitcoin research could have been inspired by the experience of Overstock which introduced Bitcoin as a payment method in early 2014. According to Overstock CEO Patrick Brin, there has been a surge in sales the first day of Bitcoin adoption, followed by a gradual increase. in Bitcoin sales on a weekly basis.
Amazon's recent history tends to be reminiscent of November 2017. The Amazon subsidiary registered three cryptocurrency-related domains, making the same headlines as July 2021. Amazon also hasn't commented on the purpose of domain registrations, which sparked speculation in the media that Bitcoin is imminent. implemented as a means of payment. At that time, optimism reigned in the Bitcoin market as the price broke above $7,000 for the first time, so it is difficult to gauge the impact of this news on the market.
Speaking of the potential Amazon token, the company already has some experience in this area. In 2013, Amazon introduced Amazon Coins that Kindle Fire owners could use to make purchases on the Amazon App Store. Although the company referred to these coins as "virtual currency", they were more like Xbox Live Points.
However, there is an example where such coins have inspired companies to create cryptocurrency and blockchain solutions. Before Kik Messenger introduced its Kin cryptocurrency, so-called Kik Points were available to purchase specially themed stickers and smileys.
Amazon and Bitcoin are not mentioned together for the first time but the cryptocurrency remains unavailable as a means of payment on the platform. Unlike in 2014, when Amazon officials said they had no interest, they are now openly talking about "interest in space". Amazon is one of the largest online retailers, so adding BTC would boost the crypto market and make crypto adoption even more widespread.
But Amazon is still wary of cryptocurrencies. But even eBay, which had a similar attitude before, recently allowed NFTs to be sold. As competitors add crypto-related solutions and the crypto market evolves, we may soon hear the real news of Amazon accepting Bitcoin.
