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Popular burger joint Steak ’n Shake buys $10 million bitcoin

The company says that accepting bitcoin payments has led to a "self-reinforcing cycle" where crypto revenue helps fund upgrades and improvements.

Updated Jan 17, 2026, 7:14 p.m. Published Jan 17, 2026, 3:24 p.m.
A burger and some fries (sk/Unsplash/Modified by CoinDesk)
(sk/Unsplash/Modified by CoinDesk)

What to know:

  • Steak 'n Shake has added $10 million worth of bitcoin to its corporate treasury, eight months after starting to accept BTC payments at all its U.S. locations.
  • The company says that accepting bitcoin has led to a "self-reinforcing cycle" where crypto revenue helps fund upgrades and improvements.
  • The move is part of a larger trend of corporate bitcoin accumulation, with total bitcoin held in treasuries now above 4 million, according to Bitcointreasuries data.

Popular fast-food chain Steak ‘n Shake announced it added $10 million worth of bitcoin to its corporate treasury this week, continuing its push into crypto after eight months of accepting BTC payments at all its U.S. locations.

The company said on social media that the move is part of a "self-reinforcing" cycle: customers pay in bitcoin, sales rise, and all crypto revenue flows into what it calls its . Those funds, in turn, help bankroll upgrades, from better ingredients to restaurant remodels, without raising menu prices.

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“Eight months ago today, Steak n Shake launched its burger-to-Bitcoin transformation when we started accepting bitcoin payments,” the company wrote. “Our same-store sales have risen dramatically ever since.”

Steak ‘n Shake began accepting bitcoin in May last year over the Lightning Network. The roll-out was pitched as a way to cut card processing fees in half and tap into a younger, crypto-savvy customer base.

It has worked.

Same-store sales rose more than 10% in Q2 2025, according to the company, while COO Dan Edwards said the firm saves about 50% in processing fees when customers choose to pay in BTC.

In October, the chain introduced a Bitcoin-themed burger. It also started donating a small portion of each Bitcoin Meal to open-source Bitcoin development.

This recent $10 million buy, roughly 105 BTC at current prices, marks the chain’s most direct treasury investment to date.

While the amount pales in comparison to larger publicly-traded companies’ bitcoin treasuries, such as Strategy’s 687,410 BTC worth more than $65 billion, it shows continued corporate accumulation. Bitcoin held in treasuries, from governments to exchange-traded funds and everything in between, is now above 4 million according to Bitcointreasuries data.

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