This article was published on January 23, 2014

TigerDirect now accepts Bitcoin, claims to be first major US electronics retailer and largest company to do so


TigerDirect now accepts Bitcoin, claims to be first major US electronics retailer and largest company to do so

TigerDirect today announced it has started accepting Bitcoin as a method of payment on over 200,000 products via both its desktop and mobile websites. The company claimed it is the first major US electronics retailer and the largest company to date to accept the digital currency.

Overstock.com recently started accepting Bitcoin, and while it’s unclear how big TigerDirect is in comparison, its parent company Systemax is certainly larger. In 2012, Overstock.com saw revenues of $1.1 billion while Systemax generated $3.54 billion.

“TigerDirect has always been on the forefront of alternative online payment methods and delivering the most convenient ways for our customers to shop,” Steven Leeds, Director of Corporate Marketing at TigerDirect, said in a statement. “With individuals building their own high-powered PCs with parts offered on our site to mine Bitcoins, it’s a logical fit.”

TigerDirect says it is using BitPay as its payment processor, a popular choice for sites looking to add Bitcoin support. Furthermore, the retailer says it will also sell the computer components used to mine the currency as well; it has partnered with AMD to build what it says will be the largest assortment of mining graphic cards in the industry. Check it out here.

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To pay with Bitcoin on TigerDirect, you’ll have to follow these three steps according to the announcement page:

  1. Get A Wallet: A Bitcoin wallet is a digital wallet which stores your Bitcoin balance and allows you to transact with other users online and offline. All wallets can communicate with each other similar to emails, so you can send and receive Bitcoins to anyone regardless of the type of wallet they use. You can get one free here.
  2. Shop TigerDirect.com: Once you have your wallet setup and ready to go, you can buy over 200,000 products, including the latest deals.
  3. Checkout: After selecting your products, simply hit checkout and select Bitcoin as your payment method.

If you need more guidance, TigerDirect has set up a help apage.

See also – WordPress.com criticizes PayPal, credit card firms for restrictions, now lets you pay with Bitcoin and Shopify adds support for Bitcoin, letting more than 75,000 of its merchants accept the virtual currency

Top Image Credit: zcopley/Flickr

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