Starting Tuesday, Equinox’s fitness club customers in New York City will be given the option to use cryptocurrencies to pay for their annual memberships.
“More than ever, consumers are making luxury purchases through cryptocurrency, and offering cryptocurrency as a form of payment enables Equinox to continue to meet their community where they are — both digitally and physically — in support of members’ high-performing lifestyles,” an Equinox spokesperson told FOX Business. “Equinox’s vision is to inspire a connected community with personalized service and unparalleled experiences.”
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Customers will be able to use cryptocurrency to purchase Equinox’s $4,045 annual all access membership and $4,545 annual destination membership. Both plans include a $500 initiation fee and 4.5% New York City sales tax.
The annual all access membership offers access to 80 Equinox clubs across the United States, including all classes and amenities. Meanwhile, the destination membership includes exclusive access to all Equinox Fitness, Destination and Sports Clubs locations worldwide.
The payment method is being made available through a partnership with BitPay, the world’s largest provider of bitcoin and cryptocurrency payment services. Accepted cryptocurrencies will include Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Dogecoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Wrapped Bitcoin, Shiba Inu Coin, Binance USD, Dai, Gemini Dollar, Pax Dollar and USD Coin.
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In order to take advantage, prospective members must obtain a pre-approved BitPay ID before checking out on Equinox’s website. During checkout, customers will select BitPay as their form of payment. Once in the BitPay payment window, the exchange rate for cryptocurrency to U.S. dollars is locked for 15 minutes.
Equinox and BitPay are not responsible for any exchange rate changes when payment is not completed within the initial 15-minute period or in connection with any refund permitted by the terms of the Equinox membership agreement. Any refund will be made solely in U.S. dollars equal to the original U.S. dollar value of the payment and will be issued via check mailed to the customer’s address on file.
In addition to Equinox, AMC Entertainment currently accepts cryptocurrencies for online movie ticket and concessions purchases, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, Dogecoin and Shiba Inu. In December, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said that the electric vehicle maker would accept Dogecoin for some of its merchandise. Fidelity also announced it would offer digital asset accounts with its 401(k) plans, allowing customers to invest a portion of their retirement savings in bitcoin.