Despite the shocking resignation of CEO Patrick Byrne, who used to be a bitcoin fan, online retail giant Overstock confirms to remains committed to it’s crypto and blockchain ventures.
Byrne was considered a Blockchain lover. He stepped down due to his involvement in several FBI investigations concerning Russian femme fatale Maria Butina.
Hours after Bryne resigned, Overstock’s interim CEO Jonathan Johnson says the company will “absolutely” continue to focus on its fledgling blockchain business.
Jonathan Johnson is associated with Overstock since 2002. He was a president from 2008 until 2013. Johnson is currently president of Overstock’s blockchain unit, Medici Ventures. He assured that nothing will fade Overstock’s commitment to crypto and blockchain.
“Our team at Medici Ventures, which is the blockchain-focused business, is still working hard,” Johnson said. “And those different companies in the Medici family are growing at a nice rate.”
Talking #blockchain and @medici_ventures on the Hill today. pic.twitter.com/oHmKqkhRru
— Jonathan Johnson (@JJohnsonNow) January 24, 2019
As reported by CCN in October 2018, Medici Ventures invested $6 million in Minds.This is an open-source blockchain-based social network.
Minds is a decentralized alternative to Facebook, Twitter, and Google-owned YouTube and are committed to strict user privacy and no censorship.
OVERSTOCK WAS FIRST MAJOR E-COMMERCE SITE TO ACCEPT BITCOIN
In 2014, Overstock became the first major e-commerce site to accept bitcoin payments.
In January 2019, Overstock became the first major US company to announce plans to pay part of its 2019 Ohio state business taxes in bitcoin.
Overstock Will Be First Major Company to Pay State Taxes in Bitcoin https://t.co/HTZjCq6WyN
— CCN – Capital & Celeb News (@CapitalAndCeleb) January 3, 2019
Chinese private equity firm GSR Capital invested $270 million in one of the Overstock’s blockchain subsidiaries — tZero, to buy 15% stake in the security token exchange operator at a $1.5 billion valuation, making its worth more than the entire company that time.
The company’s blockchain investment is recently comprised of 60% of the firm’s total value.
