Walmart confirmed Monday that a news release that suggested the retail giant would accept the cryptocurrency Litecoin as a form of payment was fraudulent and that the information did not come from them.

GlobeNewswire, a press release distribution service, put out a release that referred to a partnership between the two on Monday morning. The release, which quoted Walmart's CEO, referenced a website that did not work and the announcement was never officially posted by the retailer.

The announcement stated that Litecoin would be accepted as a form of payment at Walmart starting Oct. 1.

Litecoin had also tweeted out the announcement on its Twitter account. The tweet and the news release are now deleted.

Walmart spokesman Randy Hargrove told CNBC that the post was not authentic. Hargrove said Walmart and GlobeNewswire are investigating how the statement was released.

The price of Litecoin surged briefly after the release. Litecoin's price quickly fell after confirmation that there was no partnership with Walmart.

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