NFL Player Russell Okung To Be ‘Paid In Bitcoin’
Carolina Panthers’ Russell Okung will become the first NFL star to be paid in Bitcoin (BTC) after announcing he will receive half of his $13 million salary in BTC.
The offensive linesman has partnered with Jack Mallers and Strike, the payments firm which will provide the infrastructure to pay the player’s salary in Bitcoin.
In the joint announcement, Russell Okung alluded to the manipulation of the fiat system, which he believes is used to control society.
‘Money is more than currency; it’s power,’ said Okung. ‘The way money is handled from creation to dissemination is part of that power. Getting paid in Bitcoin is the 1st step of opting out of the corrupt, manipulated economy we all inhabit.’
‘Bitcoiners are not only disrupting the status quo, we are reclaiming power that is rightly ours. PAY ME IN BITCOIN today becomes a reality thanks to Strike and the Panthers front office.’
Okung’s Fight To Earn Salary In Bitcoin Has Been Ongoing For Two Years
Okung’s attempts to earn his salary paid in Bitcoin has been ongoing for two seasons. The NFL star tried to get his former team Los Angeles Chargers to pay him in Bitcoin and he tweeted in May 2019 ‘Pay me in Bitcoin’.
Okung’s vision to earn his salary in Bitcoin has finally become a reality, however. After the announcement the Carolina Panthers’ offensive linesman took to Bitcoin Twitter to announce the news, this time tweeting: ‘Paid in Bitcoin’.
And it can be expected that Okung’s groundbreaking way of earning his salary will be replicated throughout the sporting and normal world.
How It Works
Carolina Panthers will still pay Okung in US Dollars, but his paycheck will go directly to an account controlled by Strike, with Okung the custodian.
The payment company will immediately convert half of it into BTC, so when the NFL player receives his paycheck, half will be USD and the other half will be paid in Bitcoin, and held in a cold storage Zap wallet controlled by Okung.
Speaking of the deal, Strike CEO Jack Mallers said, ‘Strike users can easily spend wherever Bitcoin is accepted and with the launch of our Bitcoin payday product everyone has a simple way to get paid in Bitcoin. Today anyone can sign up for early access at payday.strike.me.’
Mallers also took to Twitter to speak of his delight in sealing the deal, and praised Okung for his leadership.
‘Unbelievably proud and humbled to have helped Russell Okung achieve his goal of getting paid in Bitcoin with [Strike]. Russel is a leader. Getting Bitcoin in exchange for your labor is much more than meets the eye. He is setting that example on a big stage.’
And while Okung’s vision has to be applauded, let’s not underestimate the work Mallers has put into this application.
The developer is the CEO of Zap, the firm which owns Strike, and is helping Bitcoin adoption as much as anybody with his Lightning Network applications.
Mallers recently made the Forbes Under 30 class of 2021, which the developer brusquely tweeted to his former English teacher, who apparently said Mallers ‘had the attention span of a goldfish’.
What is Strike?
Strike is a mobile payments application made by Zap. The company was founded by young Bitcoin “veteran” Jack Mallers who uses Bitcoin and Lightning Network to offer superior consumer payments option.
Mallers launched Strike earlier this year, but has worked on it with his Lightning Network wallet firm Zap since 2017.
Strike enables its customers to send and receive money instantly with zero fees anywhere in the world.
With its newly launched payday service, Strike also allows users to get their salary paid in Bitcoin.
Strike is the first app that can interact with your bank account and its payday service is the first of its kind that allows its clients to be paid in Bitcoin.
Strike is available for iPhone, Android and Chrome and is one of the highest-rated financial apps on the App Store and Play Store.
Paid In Bitcoin
Russell Okung is a visionary who has regulalrly spoken out about the systemic corruption, and his fight to be paid in Bitcoin is finally set to become a reality.
Jack Mallers is one of the leading developers in the Bitcoin space and is making huge moves to advance Bitcoin adoption.
Both he and Okung have said there are other sport stars across the US interested in earning their salary in Bitcoin, and Mallers even tweeted that there is more big news to come next week.
And as products like this roll out across the world we can expect top European footballers, Formula 1 stars, and other highly paid individuals to also demand to be paid in Bitcoin.
Russell Okung is finally being ‘paid in Bitcoin’ and as Jack Mallers’ Strike payday service scales it can be expected everyday people will begin to earn their salary in Bitcoin.
