Bitcoin Believer Puts House on It

Michael Komaransky, an early investor in Bitcoin, has told his listing agent that he would be willing to accept the $6.5 mln price tag attached to his Miami mansion in Bitcoin.

The seven-bedroom, 9,452-square-foot house near Coral Gables features covered terraces, a chef’s kitchen, a summer kitchen, pool, basketball court and playground.

Tried the tactic before
Komaransky, who recently left his position as the head of trading at Cumberland Mining and Materials and partners at Chicago-based DRW Trading, originally tried to buy the same house in Bitcoin from the previous owner, but with Bitcoin still very obscure back then, there was no interest from the seller.

This is also not a new phenomenon, although it is still relatively rare. In January, a house buyer in California profited $1 mln on a home thanks to an overnight spike on the digital currency.

Las Vegas developer Jack Sommer was also open to accepting Bitcoin for this $7.8 mln home in 2014.

Protection against inflation
As a trader, Komaransky knows a thing or two about investing and sees these sorts of big investments in Bitcoin as good protection against inflation, but more so for those in South America.

“From an investor’s perspective, it’s very interesting as a use of protection against inflation,” Komaransky said, adding that he predicts it will become popular in Latin America where currencies fluctuate more so than in the United States.

“You don’t have to worry about money losing its purchasing power. … More South Americans need protection against inflation.”