Phillips Auction Featuring Painting Worth $70M To Accept Bitcoin, Ethereum Payments

Phillips auction house said it will accept crypto payment for a Jean-Michel Basquiat painting, which will go under the hammer on May 18. The 16-foot painting, “Untitled, 1982,” is expected to fetch around $70 million.

“Phillips is pleased to announce that the auction house will accept cryptocurrency for the work, in either Ethereum or Bitcoin,” the 225-year-old auction house said.

"At over 16 feet wide and estimated in the region of $70 million, this monumental tour de force is poised to lead the New York auction season when it is offered in the Evening Sale of 20th Century & Contemporary Art on 18 May."

This is not the first time Phillips has dabbled in cryptos. Last year, Phillips said it would accept crypto payment for a celebrated piece of art called the “Laugh Now Panel."

Art collector Yusaka Maezawa said, “ The past six years of having Basquiat’s "Untitled" was nothing but a great pleasure and it has become a memorable piece in my collection. I hope that "Untitled" will continue its great journey in good hands and that it will bring smiles to many people all around the world."

Jean-Paul Engelen, Phillips’ President, Americas, said, "We are honored to have been entrusted by Mr. Maezawa with the sale of "Untitled," which comes at a particularly exciting time for the Basquiat market and on the heels of a record-breaking year at Phillips.”