And who can blame him? Three million U.S. dollars’ worth of value stored in anything but cryptocurrency comes with so many hassles.
If it were precious metals, he’d have to pay to have them shipped, stored and guarded. If it were in fiat, he’d have to hope his chosen bank didn’t clean him out with a Cyprus-style “bail-in,” or that government didn’t simply milk him over time with inflation. The high risks of politically-controlled money and the high transaction costs of precious metals are just too great.
The property owner, Eli, was featured on an Israeli news broadcast. The seven-bedroom villa is nestled on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in a village called Caesarea, which Eli said “is not the normal place for a holiday home for anyone from outside Israel, but the Caesarea coastline is a hidden gem.”
The property is listed on BitPremier and comes fully furnished. It features five baths, a pool and jacuzzi, a garden and safe room among other amenities. BitPremier is an escrow and listing service that matches buyers and sellers of luxury goods, all payable in Bitcoin. Their site features movie-themed vacations, yachts, art, cars, homes and more.
Most notable about Eli is that he’s chosen to take the full sale amount (minus BitPremier’s 5% commission) in Bitcoin, as sellers have the option to get the cryptocurrency converted to fiat before receipt. This will make Eli the recipient of 8,732 bitcoins if the property sells.
“I want to make history by selling my property for Bitcoin,” Eli said. “Whether the price goes up or down, I’m prepared to take the risk.”
As more people begin to go the way of Eli—choosing the benefits of cryptocurrency over the inherent risks of government money—the price volatility Eli references is expected to become less of an issue, and perhaps eventually not an issue at all.
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