E-tailer Overstock.com reported a $3m pretax loss for the third quarter of this year tied to its ongoing work building a blockchain-based stock exchange.
Overstock reported a pre-tax loss of $3.9m for the third quarter, of which $3m arose from Medici, its blockchain-focused division. The figure was included in the firm’s Q3 results, released yesterday. Overall, the company said it incurred a net loss of $3.1m for the quarter.
The Utah-based company reported $441m in revenue, up 13% from the same period last year when the firm said it earned $391m.
The news comes just over two years after Overstock began setting the stage to launch tØ, the trading platform it formally unveiled in August 2015. The company would ultimately spend $8m that year on blockchain projects.
According to founder and CEO Patrick Byrne, the latest expenses were "well worth it".
He noted in a statement:
"Our Medici business cost us $3m pre-tax this quarter, but that was well worth it as we achieve real progress in our blockchain and fintech initiatives that others have yet to demonstrate."
Overstock has been pushing ahead with its plans, announcing this week that it has tapped Connecticut-based investment bank Source Capital Group, Inc to serve as dealer-manager for its planned stock offering via blockchain.
At the time, Overstock said it will sell as many as 1 million shares using the technology.
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