An imgur user posted what appeared to be a screenshot of an Uber representative confirming Bitcoin integration. Bitcoinist picked it up and other outlets followed, all declaring that Bitcoin adoption
An imgur user posted what appeared to be a screenshot of an Uber representative confirming Bitcoin integration. Bitcoinist picked it up and other outlets followed, all declaring that Bitcoin adoption at Uber was coming. We checked it. We called Uber.
Harry Porter, communications lead for the UK, Ireland, and Nordic regions, said the rumor seemed unlikely but he needed to check with the U.S. office. Hours later, he returned with this: "I can confirm that [the rumor that Uber will soon be accepting bitcoin is] not true."
When asked about long-term plans for Bitcoin acceptance through BrainTree—Uber's payment processor—the company was direct. "No – nothing at this stage."
BrainTree had announced it would let merchants process Bitcoin payments. That created an obvious connection. Uber owns BrainTree. BrainTree handles Bitcoin. So Uber handles Bitcoin—or would soon. People made that leap. Bitcoinist never checked.
Other outlets didn't either. No one called Uber to verify the claim.
Unverified rumors harm Bitcoin. When false hype falls apart, the damage to Bitcoin is worse than if the hype had never formed. Merchants aren't moving into Bitcoin acceptance now. The blocksize debate remains unresolved. Spam attacks are slowing the network. These obstacles matter to any company considering Bitcoin, far more than rumors on imgur.
Uber and Bitcoin look like natural partners on paper. One operates payments. The other is a digital currency. But Bitcoin's technical problems prevent that arrangement.
CoinDesk contacted Uber on its own and received the same denial.
