Palantir now accepts Bitcoin payments, plans to add BTC on the balance sheet
- During an earnings call, Palantir revealed that customers can now use Bitcoin as a form of payment.
- The company also added that it was considering allocating a part of its treasury to the leading digital asset.
- Co-founded by Peter Thiel, a “pro-crypto, pro-Bitcoin maximalist,” Palantir’s move to adopt cryptocurrencies comes as no surprise.
Palantir Technologies recently announced that it would accept Bitcoin as a form of payment. The company revealed that it could even invest in the leading cryptocurrency as a treasury reserve asset.
Palantir considers investing in Bitcoin
The American software company has begun accepting the pioneer cryptocurrency as a form of payment, according to Palantir CFO Dave Glazer. During the company’s earnings call on May 11, he added that adding Bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset is “definitely on the table.”
Although Glazer did not clarify when Palantir would begin adding the leading cryptocurrency on its balance sheet, he stated:
The short answer is yes, we’re thinking about it and we’re even discussing this early, taking a look at our balance sheet in cash at quarter-end. It’s definitely on the table from a treasury perspective.
He added that the software company has $161 million in adjusted free cash flow that could go toward Bitcoin and other types of cryptocurrencies on its balance sheet.
The listed data analytics company founded by Peter Thiel currently has a market capitalization of around $34 billion. Thiel’s firm beat first-quarter revenue after securing large deals with government agencies and large corporations. The company expects its current-quarter revenue to rise 43% to $360 million.
Thiel is not new to the cryptocurrency industry, as he has invested in several crypto startups through his funds.
Institutions continue to profit from purchasing Bitcoin
Other listed institutions, including Tesla, MicroStrategy and Square, have started to invest in Bitcoin. The electric car maker also began to allow customers to pay for vehicles with BTC.
The world’s largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization has also helped boost profits of companies that have purchased the digital asset. Tesla recorded a $101 million “positive impact” toward profitability from Bitcoin sales during Q1 this year.
Since the allocation of Bitcoin into MicroStrategy’s treasury, the firm has witnessed one of its strongest operational quarters earlier this year. Although the business intelligence firm has not sold any of its BTC to date, the company revealed that it could increase or decrease its crypto holdings in the future.
Digital payments firm Square reported $3.5 billion in Bitcoin revenue, up 11-fold YoY. Square CEO Jack Dorsey said that the company sees Bitcoin as the internet’s potential to have a native currency and looks to “further that as much as we can.”
Author
Sarah Tran
Independent Analyst
Sarah has closely followed the growth of blockchain technology and its adoption since 2016.
