By Samuel Indyk
Investing.com – The price of Litecoin jumped 25% on Monday before quickly paring gains and turning negative after reports that Walmart (NYSE:WMT) may begin accepting Litecoin as payment on its e-commerce website turned out to be fake.
A press release on GlobeNewswire, a usually reputable source for company news, stated that Walmart would begin accepting Litecoin from October 1st on its e-commerce website.
A spokesperson for Walmart confirmed the Litecoin story was fake, according to CNBC.
Litecoin’s official Twitter (NYSE:TWTR) handle tweeted the news, but the tweet was swiftly deleted, leading to speculation that GlobeNewswire may have been tricked into publishing a fake press release.
The Press release
The press release announced that Walmart had signed a “major” partnership with Litecoin, where it intends to give its shoppers an opportunity to make payments with cryptocurrencies on its e-commerce store.
The price of Litecoin initially surged following the announcement. The cryptocurrency jumped 25% to a high of $233.81 before paring gains and turning negative on the day.