Hooters Blockchain: Parent Company's Stock Soars After Mentioning Blockchain

Chanticleer Holdings, the parent company to Hooters and several other chain restaurants, experienced a massive jump in its stock price after publishing a press release that contained the word “blockchain.”

The company’s stock—listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange as BURG—jumped as much as 50 percent Tuesday, climbing from $2.57 per share to $4.29 per share in an instant. The sock dipped slightly but has remained above $3.60 at the time of publication.

The huge gains for Chanticleer Holdings stemmed from a single press release issued by the company in which it announced that it would put its loyalty program for Hooters—the Hooters HootClub—and other restaurants on the blockchain.

Chanticleer Holdings will partner with MobivityMind, a “blockchain-architected platform for commerce and customer communication across brands,” to power what its call a “groundbreaking cryptocurrency customer loyalty and rewards program.”

“We wanted to expand our existing loyalty program with something that really changes the way our customers can leverage their rewards,” Michael Pruitt, CEO of Chanticleer Holdings, said in the press release .

Blockchain is a term closely associated with Bitcoin and cryptocurrency but has function outside of that realm. The technology essentially distributes the task of verifying transactions across a wide network of machines and devices, created a common digital history that allows otherwise unknown parties to come to an agreement and complete transactions.

The program will allow regulars at Chanticleer Holdings properties—BGR (Burgers Grilled Right), Little Big Burger, American Burger Co., Just Fresh and Hooters—to earn a digital currency called Mobivity Merit. The token can be used like fiat currency at Chanticleer Holdings restaurants and can be traded with other loyalty members.

“Mobivity Merit is real cryptocurrency, leveraging the same infrastructure and principles of Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Litecoin, and more, and will enable our customers to make use of their rewards in entirely new ways.”

Neither Chanticleer Holdings nor MobivityMind shied away from the cryptocurrency angle when mentioning the program.

“Eating a burger is now a way to mine for cryptocoins,” Dennis Becker, CEO of Mobivity said in the press release. Every meal enjoyed at any Chanticleer Holdings brand will accrue currency for the consumer that can be used for future meals or traded with other consumers. It transforms traditional consumer rewards into something that the consumer can control.”

Chanticleer Holdings is just the latest company to capitalize on the cryptocurrency craze. Last month, Long Island Iced Tea Corporation saw its stock price skyrocket after it announced that it would change its name to Long Blockchain Corporation—a move that saw its stock skyrocket by more than 225 percent.

A small financial technology company called LongFin also managed to have its stock surge by 2,600 percent after announcing it was getting into the business of cryptocurrencies.