Landry’s Restaurant Group to introduce Bitcoin loyalty program

Landry’s Restaurant Group announced a partnership with cryptocurrency firm NYDIG on Tuesday that will enable diners to earn $25 worth of Bitcoin for every $250 spent at the hospitality conglomerate’s eateries.

Landry’s will also begin keeping a portion of its corporate treasury reserves in Bitcoin under the care of NYDIG. The company is known for operating dozens of franchise entities including Morton’s, Bubba Gump Shrimp Company, the Rainforest Cafe, and the Palm. Landry’s is owned by billionaire TV personality Tillman Fertita, who also acts as the company’s CEO.

Landry’s Director of Digital Asset Strategy Trey Zeluff said in a statement:

"We view bitcoin as a good choice for a portion of our own treasury, so we want to offer that choice to our customers as well. We're proud to pioneer this concept for the hospitality industry in partnership with NYDIG."

Landry’s showed initial signs of interest in the cryptocurrency space earlier this year when it began accepting Bitcoin payments at many of its restaurants back in April. At the time, the company’s CEO said “It’s amazing how simple [a crypto] transaction is, and it is here to stay. This is where it is, and it’s inevitable that this was going to happen.”

CEO Fertita’s interest in cryptocurrency appears to have spread into other facets of his professional life as well, with his NBA franchise making headlines in the industry as well in recent months. Back in June 2021, Tillman also announced that he would begin validating blocks for the Akash Network, noting that it was time to “begin investigating mining or validating blocks as the next logical step in our digital asset strategy.”

The NYDIG too has become an active player in the blockchain space, raising hundreds of millions of dollars in 2021 to create Bitcoin-focused solutions for the insurance, banking and clean energy industries. Earlier this month, Cointelegraph also reported that the company had acquired Bitcoin micropayments firm Bottlepay in the hopes of “unlocking the financial infrastructure of the future.”