Luxury watchmaker TAG Heuer inks deal with BitPay to accept crypto online in the US

Luxury Swiss watch brand TAG Heuer will now accept cryptocurrency as payment on US websites. 

TAG Heuer will accept 12 cryptocurrencies at checkout, including Bitcoin, Dogecoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Shiba Inu, and 5 USD-pegged stablecoins. The brand will work with the support of BitPay, a bitcoin payment services provider, on transactions up to $10,000, with no minimum spend required. BitPay works by converting cryptocurrency to fiat money, which is ultimately what TAG Heuer receives.

“We have been following cryptocurrency developments very closely ever since Bitcoin first started trading. As an avant-garde watchmaker with an innovative spirit, we knew TAG Heuer would adopt what promises to be a globally integrated technology in the near future despite the fluctuations— one that will deeply transform our industry and beyond," said Frédéric Arnault, CEO of TAG Heuer, in a statement. 

Fashion brands have increasingly been experimenting with crypto payments, despite recent instability and risk involved in the space. Last week, TerraUSD stablecoin and its sister token Luna fell to a record low. Bitcoin's price also fell to a low of $30,311.99, down over 30% since the start of the year.

Gucci and fashion label Off White also started accepting crypto as a payment method this year. For fashion brands, including TAG Heuer, this can be a challenge when considering refunds. Returning a TAG Heuer watch means BitPay would convert the dollar amount to cryptocurrency at the going market rate to give it back to the customer. Gucci, which announced accepting crypto in select stores across the US earlier this month, also issues returns using the same cryptocurrency an item was purchased, but converts the value to the going rate at the time of the refund, according to detail obtained by Vogue Business. 

Despite the volatility in crypto, this is just one of many upcoming Web3 experiments for TAG Heuer, and LVMH brands more broadly.

“As a luxury brand we had to ensure that our entrance into Web3 would meet our standards of excellence and thanks to our nimble teams in-house and with the support of BitPay we are able to dive into this new financial world in the best way possible. This new crypto payment feature is just the beginning of many exciting projects for TAG Heuer in the Web3 universes," said Arnault, son of billionaire Bernard Arnault, who serves as the chief executive of LVMH.

TAG Heuer will support more than 100 different crypto wallets and exchanges, including Coinbase, Ledger Wallet, Metamask, Crypto.com, Gemini Wallet, Binance, and others.