Avnet has become the latest major enterprise to begin accepting payment in bitcoin and other cryptocurrency. On March 19, 2019, the company announced that it will allow customers to pay for goods and services using bitcoin and bitcoin cash. Crypto payment processor BitPay will facilitate the transactions.
Founded in 1921, Avnet is one of the oldest major American electronics companies. With more than 15,000 employees and net income north of $250 million, it’s also one of the country’s larger technology firms. Today, its business centers around helping to design and manufacturer electronics for other companies.
On Tuesday, Avnet announced that the companies it works with can now pay for their goods and services using bitcoin and bitcoin cash.
The new payment options are available immediately, Sunny Trinh, the company’s vice president of demand creation, told Bitcoin Magazine in an email. He added that the company has already “closed several multi-million-dollar transactions” using cryptocurrency.
“Our customers have been asking to pay in cryptocurrency, and we listened,” Trinh said. “Bitcoin gives our customers added flexibility, and we are excited to offer our customers the option to pay with bitcoin or bitcoin cash.”
Avnet’s decision to begin accepting bitcoin and bitcoin cash reflects an effort to make it easier for businesses to purchase goods and services from the company by giving clients one less challenge to worry about during the difficult work of bringing new products to market.
“We recognized that cryptocurrency would help our customers overcome the competition and challenges they face every day in taking their ideas from design to production,” Trinh said. “And we listened to our customers who said they would like the option to pay for our products and services with cryptocurrency.”
“Cryptocurrency is one more way we help our customers bring their products to market faster,” he added.
Sonny Singh, chief commercial officer at BitPay, expressed a similar sentiment. He wrote in a statement, “I predict Avnet will attract many new blockchain-focused customers from around the world that want to take advantage of paying with bitcoin.”
The idea that accepting bitcoin is important for generating new business is notable, especially coming from a century-old, blue-chip enterprise. So far, most of the companies that have taken the step of accepting payment in bitcoin have been younger and smaller.
This trend has found its way to Switzerland, as well. Digitec and Galaxus, an online retailer akin to Amazon, has also started accepting cryptocurrency as payments. Coinify will act as a payment processor for the website, accepting bitcoin, bitcoin cash, ether, litecoin and other notable altcoins and immediately converting these funds into Swiss francs for the retailer.