Sotheby’s – among the globally top-tier, longest-running auction houses – has reportedly disclosed that it will be adding crypto to the list of accepted payment measures, at an upcoming auction. 

Specifically, Charles Stewart – Head of Sotheby – reportedly shared that the firm will roll out Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) payments, as included in the upcoming auction of Banksy’s “Love is in the Air.”

The new payment measure will reportedly be supported via a collaboration with the high-profile crypto exchange entity in America – Coinbase – Stewart shared in an interview with CNBC’s Squawk Box.

Stewart further explained that Sotheby’s most recent initiative kickstarts the next stage for deep-diving into crypto payments for physical art, following the company’s debut of nonfungible tokens (NFTs), earlier in 2021. 

“Love is in the Air” is reportedly an iconic protest-themed artwork designed by pseudonymous street artist from England – Banksy. The work will be offered in Sotheby’s Contemporary Art Evening Auction on May 12 in New York. 

Bidding for the work, where estimation reportedly claimed its value to fall somewhere within the $3 million and $5 million, will be carried out in the US dollar, which comes with a chance to use crypto for payment for the amount.

International auction houses have reportedly been establishing their presence across the crypto sphere in a more aggressive manner throughout the past months. 

In February, British auction house Christie’s reportedly disclosed details of an NFT auction of Mike Winkelmann’s digital artwork “Everydays: The First 5000 Days.”