Sotheby’s Accepts Cryptocurrency at Auction for First Time

Sotheby’s Accepts Cryptocurrency at Auction for First Time

Gallery technicians display a Banksy artwork called "Love is in the Air" read for auction. - Copyright Kirsty Wigglesworth/Associated Press

Sotheby's Auction House accepted cryptocurrency as payment for a physical artwork for the first time, selling a Banksy iconic painting for $12.9 million.

The "Love is in the Air" artwork shows a protester, in black and white, winding up to throw a bouquet of flowers in hand.

According to Sotheby's account on Twitter, four bidders had competed for 14 minutes to buy the piece.

The auction house teamed up with cryptocurrency platform Coinbase to accept digital assets Bitcoin and Ether as payments.

The bids were submitted in US dollars, but the buyer had the chance to pay with a cryptocurrency for the first time.

This sale paves the road to accepting cryptocurrencies in future auctions, and keeping up with the new technologies, said Sotheby's.