A company in Japan wants to start paying employees in Bitcoin

Abby Jackson

Dec 15, 2017, 04:21 IST

A company in Japan wants to start paying employees in Bitcoin

A general view of the Bitcoin booth at the 2015 International CES at the Las Vegas Convention Center on January 8, 2015 in Las Vegas, Nevada. CES, the world's largest annual consumer technology trade show, runs through January 9 and is expected to feature 3,600 exhibitors showing off their latest products and services to about 150,000 attendees.

Japanese company GMO Internet Group will start paying employees partially in bitcoin in 2018.
Employees can receive payments from about $88 to $881 in bitcoin.
The company invests in the cryptocurrency.

A Japanese internet services provider will start to pay employees partially in bitcoin, according to cryptocurrency watcher CoinDesk.

Beginning in 2018, GMO Internet Group will give employees the option to receive payments from 10,000 yen (about $88) to 100,000 yen (about $881). Employees will also get an additional 10% of the salary they choose to receive in bitcoin as an incentive.

GMO has an interest in promoting bitcoin. It is set to launch a new cryptocurrency mining operation in 2018, and actively trades bitcoin.

Bitcoin is rising in popularity, with people using bitcoin to pay for private schools and buying homes.

But some still urge caution. World renowned economist Robert Shiller said bitcoin was "the best example of a bubble."