Billionaire real estate mogul Rick Caruso has revealed that his company has invested in bitcoin for its treasury and will begin accepting the cryptocurrency for rent payment at its properties. Among the tenants of one of his properties is Elon Musk’s Tesla. Caruso said, “We believe that cryptocurrency is here to stay.”
Caruso Going the Tesla Route, Investing in Bitcoin and Accepting It as a Means of Payment
Billionaire real estate developer known for his lavish outdoor malls, Rick Caruso announced Wednesday on CNBC that his real estate company, Caruso Properties, has invested in bitcoin. In addition, he said the company “will begin accepting bitcoin as rent payment at its residential and retail properties.”
Established in 1987, his Los Angeles-based company has over 2.5 million square feet of property assets, its website details. Its properties include town centers, residences, offices, outdoor malls, apartments, and “a world-class resort.” Among them is The Grove, which Caruso described as “One of the highest-grossing shopping and entertainment centers in the country.” According to Forbes, Rick Caruso’s net worth is currently $4.2 billion. The Wall Street Journal calls him “Southern California’s retail King.”
The billionaire said his company has invested a portion of its corporate treasury in bitcoin and entered into a partnership with crypto exchange Gemini. He was quoted as saying:
We believe that cryptocurrency is here to stay. We believe that bitcoin is a right investment for us. We’ve allocated a percentage of what would normally go into the capital markets into bitcoin.
In addition to investing in bitcoin, Caruso’s company will also accept the cryptocurrency as a means of payment from its clients.
One of his tenants at the Americana at Brand center in
