Skip to main content

Will you buy into Bitcoin if Mike Tyson tells you to?

bitcoin directs digital wallets tysonbitcoin01
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Whether the rumors of Hulk Hogan missing out on the George Foreman Grill endorsement contract are true or not, Mike Tyson isn’t about to let the same thing happen to him with the future of digital currencies. He’s now endorsing his own digital wallet, putting the value of his name to hardware that makes it easier to hold on to your virtual cash.

The company whose product he’s actually endorsing is Bitcoin Direct, a subsidiary of Connexus Corporation, which previously announced another partnership with Tyson making Bitcoin ATMs more broadly available. The digital wallet, while compatible with those same machines, is an entirely different piece of kit.

The wallet, which is app-based, is designed to bring Bitcoins to smartphones in an easier manner than ever before. Users will be able to buy and sell the coins through the app, setting certain thresholds for minimum amounts, letting them quickly confirm payments over the platform, without risking losing all of their crypto-currency through a glitch or via hacking.

Related: Bitcoin isn’t just for drugs anymore! Here’s what normal people need to know

Transactions are all handled through Bitcoin Direct’s Glidera exchange, as well as through the sharing of coins and wallets with friends and family if needed. The only real nod to Mike Tyson within the app is that some of its styling is reminiscent of his infamous tribal face tattoo.

The purpose of the app is to make accessing Bitcoins easier, to the point where more general consumers are interested in using it for everyday purchases and sending money over vast distances. Unlike banks, which can charge high fees for sending large sums between countries, Bitcoins can be transferred instantaneously with no handling fee whatsoever.

The reason for partnering with Tyson is clear too: it raises awareness of the platform. While the man himself has admitted he is far from a Bitcoin expert, he appreciates what the technology can do and said that he hopes his partnership with the exchange will help encourage others to feel the same way.

Editors' Recommendations

Jon Martindale
Jon Martindale is the Evergreen Coordinator for Computing, overseeing a team of writers addressing all the latest how to…
FBI moves in to investigate Twitter’s massive Bitcoin hack
Twitter symbol photo. Credits: Twitter official.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is now examining the major hack that hit Twitter on Wednesday, July 17, in a bid to find out who was behind the incident, the Wall Street Journal reports

Twitter accounts belonging to Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Bill Gates, Elon Musk, and Jeff Bezos, among other high-profile users of the microblogging service, were hit in a scam that involved a fake tweet encouraging followers to send payments to a Bitcoin wallet. It had some success, too, as data on Blockchain.com showed that more than $115,000 via 392 transactions was sent to the Bitcoin wallet posted in the messages.

Read more
Dozens of major Twitter accounts hacked in massive Bitcoin scam
Twitter Bitcoin

Update: Late Wednesday night, Twitter revealed what it knows so far about the hack that targeted dozens of high-profile accounts on its service -- and it isn't much.

Dozens of high-profile Twitter accounts were seemingly hacked in a massive Bitcoin scam on Wednesday afternoon, with each account tweeting out messages offering anyone thousands of dollars worth of cryptocurrency. After more than an hour, the social network disabled tweeting from verified accounts in order to stop the message from spreading.

Read more
How to buy Ripple
ripple cryptocurrency banking news ripplexrp02

While all cryptocurrencies are a little different from one another, Ripple stands apart with its backing by major banks. That's lead to some exciting partnerships, which in turn helped boost Ripple and its transactional protocol, XRP, to become one of the largest cryptocurrencies by market share in early 2018.

Cryptocurrency know-how

Read more