Bitcoin affiliate art site selling $10,000 Notorious B.I.G. Painting

When Bitcoin and a subsequent raft of cryptocurrencies first landed in the early part of the decade, many people -- including noted economists and finance experts -- dismissed them as a fad. These new forms of digital money were viewed as little more than capitalist Tamagotchis, currencies with no value to anyone except those looking to buy illicit items.

What can Bitcoin get you?

There are plenty of other luxury items that Bitcoin can buy. A painting of late great rapper Notorious BIG is available on online gallery site Bitpremier.com for 2.946 Bitcoin (or about $10,000, for the more traditional buyer). Boats, planes and even a condo in the Trump hotel are for sale on other sites. Any of them would be the perfect status symbol for the modern tech millionaire.

The world's most expensive art goes to auction: Why records keep being broken
The world's most expensive art goes to auction: Why records keep being broken
According to Hileman, there are also more practical factors that come into play when buyers choose Bitcoin, such as the speed of the transactions and lower fees compared to traditional payment methods like credit cards.

"If you're only paying a $2 transaction fee on a piece of art that's worth tens of thousands, the fee is basically zero. But if you're paying 2 or 3% on a piece of art of that value, then the numbers can go up quite a bit."

Deregulation and decentralization are central to Bitcoin's libertarian appeal -- and for Dadiani that is what is so exciting about it. "It's going to change everything, but it must start with people seeing the world differently," she said. "This is our chance to innovate, with something that doesn't ask for permission ... and that's why its exciting for me."

Source: CNN.com
Link to B.I.G. artwork: BitPremier.com