The New York Digital Investment Group (NYDIG) said that it will be paying the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) Houston Rockets franchise in Bitcoin (BTC) as part of a partnership that is aimed at promoting cryptocurrency education and adoption.
In a November 16 official announcement, the Houston Rockets said the New York Digital Investment Group (NYDIG) would become the team’s official BTC services partner and platform. As part of this partnership, NYDIG wants to name some of the Rocket’s premium seating at the Toyota Center in Houston to become the ‘Bitcoin Suites.’
This deal with the NYDIG appears to be a part of a bigger strategy for the Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta. Fertitta is also the chairman and CEO of Landry’s Restaurant Group. In the past week, the firm said that it would be introducing a bitcoin rewards program for its restaurants and is now rolling out bitcoin payment options.
The deal appears to be part of a bigger move for Rockets owner whose restaurant introduced a Bitcoin rewards program. Through Landry’s and other ventures, Fertitta who is worth an estimated $6.3 billion is also the owner of a few hotels and five casino resorts across the US.
So far, there have been no reports of bitcoin or other cryptos being accepted at the venues at the time of writing. Nonetheless, in June, Fertitta stated that his holding firm planned to start validating blocks on the Akash Network.
In 2021, the cryptocurrency space has seen most of the major basketball franchises in the United States partner with firms that deal with digital assets and blockchain. Last month, Voyager Digital signed a deal with the Dallas Mavericks aiming to make cryptocurrency more accessible via fan engagement.
Coinbase also recently inked a multi-year sponsorship deal with the NBA to be its exclusive cryptocurrency platform partner.
