The big picture: AMC is a firm believer that it can leverage cryptocurrency to help get its business back on track after being derailed and nearly driven out of business by the pandemic. The company, which itself became a meme stock over the summer, is trading down more than nine percent on the day but is still up a whopping 1,928 percent year to date.
AMC has been a staunch supporter of cryptocurrencies as a method of payment in 2021, and it doesn't look like the theater chain's position is going to change anytime soon.
During the company's recent Q3 earnings call with investors, CEO Adam Aron reiterated that they already accept cryptocurrency for gift cards and are working on accepting virtual currencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Dogecoin and others for online payments through their website and mobile apps.
Notably, Aron said that while they will accept crypto, they will not hold it on their balance sheet.
Aron also added that they are exploring the possibility of accepting Shiba Inu, a meme coin inspired by Dogecoin that has skyrocketed in popularity as of late. According to CoinGecko, Shiba Inu is the 11th largest cryptocurrency with a market cap of more than $30.4 billion.
Crypto is red hot at the moment. Bitcoin earlier today set a new all-time high of $68,525.85 according to CoinDesk, and Ethereum also recorded a new high mark of $4,839.92. Year to date, these two cryptocurrencies have registered returns of 133.86 percent and 552.34 percent, respectively.
As a whole, the global cryptocurrency market cap currently sits at $3.05 trillion, having eclipsed the $3 trillion mark for the first time this week.
Image credit Meg Boulden