Blue Origin’s New Shepard flights can now be paid for in crypto

Jeff Bezos’s owned space company, Blue Origin, now offers the option to receive payments in Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, USDT, and USDC for flights aboard the New Shepard, a segment of the space exploration business that is mainly for tourism purposes. To make this possible, Blue Origin will be collaborating with payment processor Shift4, as per a press release on Monday. 

“Together with Blue Origin, we are making space accessible to explorers around the globe. This partnership will enable adventurous travelers to book the adventure of a lifetime, no matter their preferred payment method – all with a simple, frictionless experience,” said Shift4 CEO Taylor Lauber.

Created in 1999, Shift4’s technology offerings have been used to process payments for companies in multiple industries. 

“Crypto is now a $4 trillion asset class, and the sky is the limit when it comes to its potential in the current payments ecosystem…We believe crypto and stablecoins are going to become an increasingly popular way for consumers to pay, particularly for high-end purchases, as both the consumer and merchant benefit financially from these transactions,” said Shift 4’s Head of Crypto Alex Wilson. 

At the time of reporting, Shift4 Payments was priced at $83.95, up by 2.87%. The company went public in 2020, right after the coronavirus pandemic, and it was one of the few firms to do so, according to Fintech Wrap Up.