Don't Worry, Overstock's New CEO Is Already 'Drunk on Bitcoin's Kool-Aid'

Digital retail platform Overstock.com's new CEO is not planning any major changes to the company's blockchain efforts after the departure of its founder.

Over the past several years, Byrne has championed blockchain tools and projects, overseeing the growth of Medici Ventures, Overstock's blockchain-focused subsidiary, and tZERO, the security token trading platform.

These projects will continue, said Jonathan Johnson, who was named interim CEO upon Byrne's resignation.

He told CoinDesk that he's "All in" on Overstock's blockchain efforts, noting that he had been running the day-to-day operations at Medici over the past three years and has even accepted his bonus in bitcoin in the past.

Johnson said during Overstock's Q2 earnings call earlier this month that the company would be less aggressive about growing its keiretsu, a statement he echoed Friday.

While Johnson does not have any specific plans at this stage for where to take Overstock, he expressed support for the various blockchain projects and hinted that the digital retail platform may begin accepting additional cryptocurrencies as payment methods.

"I would love to see Overstock accepting ravencoin, I just think that would be great. My view is any kind of widely accepted cryptocurrency, Overstock should be accepting," Johnson said.

He did not speak to when Overstock may begin accepting other cryptocurrencies, noting he was "Less than 24 hours into this."

As for Overstock's blockchain-focused subsidiaries, Johnson said they too will continue.

Overstock will hold an investor call on Aug. 26 at 8:30 a.m. EDT, where Johnson will seek to reassure shareholders.