[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":173},["ShallowReactive",2],{"article-psychoactive-leads-early-adoption-of-crypto-payroll-in-new-zealand":3},{"data":4,"meta":172},{"id":5,"documentId":6,"title":7,"slug":8,"createdAt":9,"updatedAt":10,"publishedAt":11,"locale":12,"externalLink":12,"rank":13,"published":14,"cover":15,"preview":27,"author":36,"category":42,"article":48,"updatedBy":157,"seo":168},158,"xavfm2t4ju09y7k0d9hpb5ab","Psychoactive Leads Early Adoption of Crypto Payroll in New Zealand","psychoactive-leads-early-adoption-of-crypto-payroll-in-new-zealand","2026-02-17T01:58:21.375Z","2026-03-02T21:20:32.036Z","2026-03-02T21:20:32.314Z",null,0,"2022-07-21",{"id":16,"documentId":17,"name":18,"alternativeText":12,"caption":12,"width":12,"height":12,"formats":12,"hash":19,"ext":20,"mime":21,"size":22,"url":23,"previewUrl":12,"provider":24,"provider_metadata":12,"folderPath":25,"createdAt":26,"updatedAt":26,"publishedAt":26,"locale":12},219,"lbrqcc0x6ylxtbx7b5jjl7ta","Crypto 2x1_converted.avif","Crypto_2x1_converted_016687e1a3",".avif","image/avif",484.45,"https://new-psychoactive-website-media.syd1.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/Crypto_2x1_converted_016687e1a3.avif","@johngerome/strapi-provider-upload-spaces","/7","2026-02-24T14:35:49.354Z",{"id":28,"documentId":29,"name":30,"alternativeText":12,"caption":12,"width":12,"height":12,"formats":12,"hash":31,"ext":20,"mime":21,"size":32,"url":33,"previewUrl":12,"provider":24,"provider_metadata":12,"folderPath":25,"createdAt":34,"updatedAt":34,"publishedAt":35,"locale":12},213,"smg0pi4hm2zapt1p0gwkuy3y","Crypto 1x1_converted.avif","Crypto_1x1_converted_7763ec346e",86.76,"https://new-psychoactive-website-media.syd1.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/Crypto_1x1_converted_7763ec346e.avif","2026-02-24T14:35:49.067Z","2026-02-24T14:35:49.068Z",{"id":37,"documentId":38,"name":39,"createdAt":40,"updatedAt":40,"publishedAt":41,"locale":12},1,"pnaqgsqple27mk6i7985pfg9","Andrew Hillstead","2025-11-18T12:59:27.989Z","2025-11-18T12:59:27.983Z",{"id":43,"documentId":44,"name":45,"createdAt":46,"updatedAt":46,"publishedAt":47,"locale":12},2,"c9u9aa1ufejoqid5n37xie6e","News","2025-11-18T13:02:11.452Z","2025-11-18T13:02:11.449Z",[49],{"__component":50,"id":51,"body":52},"shared.rich-text",804,[53,59,64,68,80,84,88,105,109,113,116,120,138,142,146],{"type":54,"level":43,"children":55},"heading",[56],{"text":57,"type":58},"One of the First in New Zealand","text",{"type":60,"children":61},"paragraph",[62],{"text":63,"type":58},"",{"type":60,"children":65},[66],{"text":67,"type":58},"In April 2022, Psychoactive Studios became one of the first companies in New Zealand to implement structured, voluntary crypto payroll.",{"type":60,"children":69},[70,72,78],{"text":71,"type":58},"At the time, we were already accepting cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum as payment for our services.This period also coincided with our exploration into Web3 and digital ownership through projects like ",{"url":73,"type":74,"children":75},"/content-hub/psychoactive-amphibians-exploring-nfts-and-digital-ownership","link",[76],{"text":77,"type":58},"Psychoactive Amphibians",{"text":79,"type":58},". Extending that thinking internally felt like a natural next step. If clients could pay us in crypto, we saw an opportunity to give our team the option to allocate part of their salary towards it as well.",{"type":60,"children":81},[82],{"text":83,"type":58},"The initiative was available to all team members and operated alongside our standard New Zealand payroll compliance processes. Participation was entirely opt-in, with a defined cap on the percentage of salary that could be allocated.",{"type":60,"children":85},[86],{"text":87,"type":58},"Before launching the system, we undertook internal consultation and external research to ensure:",{"type":89,"format":90,"children":91},"list","unordered",[92,97,101],{"type":93,"children":94},"list-item",[95],{"text":96,"type":58},"There was genuine interest from our team",{"type":93,"children":98},[99],{"text":100,"type":58},"We remained fully compliant with our obligations as an employer",{"type":93,"children":102},[103],{"text":104,"type":58},"The system could integrate cleanly alongside our existing payroll software",{"type":60,"children":106},[107],{"text":108,"type":58},"The structure operated through voluntary payroll deductions. Crypto conversions were processed via a centralised platform, allowing us to reconcile deductions alongside traditional payroll and maintain administrative clarity.",{"type":60,"children":110},[111],{"text":112,"type":58},"At the time, structured recurring crypto payroll was rare in New Zealand. While some international companies had begun experimenting with digital asset compensation, very few New Zealand agencies had implemented a compliant, automated payroll-linked crypto investment system.",{"type":60,"children":114},[115],{"text":63,"type":58},{"type":54,"level":43,"children":117},[118],{"text":119,"type":58},"A Snapshot in Time",{"type":60,"children":121},[122,124,129,131,136],{"text":123,"type":58},"This initiative reflected a specific moment in our evolution as a studio. Between 2021 and 2022, we were actively exploring the intersection of Web3, digital ownership, and emerging financial systems. Offering crypto payroll aligned with that curiosity and with our broader interest in future-facing technologies. That same mindset continues today in how we approach AI and automation in projects such as our work on ",{"url":125,"type":74,"children":126},"/work/super-ai",[127],{"text":128,"type":58},"SuperAI",{"text":130,"type":58}," and in articles like ",{"url":132,"type":74,"children":133},"/content-hub/how-we-use-ai-in-web-design-to-increase-speed-quality-and-innovation",[134],{"text":135,"type":58},"How We Use AI in Web Design",{"text":137,"type":58},".",{"type":60,"children":139},[140],{"text":141,"type":58},"We no longer offer crypto payroll. However, we’re proud to have explored it early and thoughtfully.",{"type":60,"children":143},[144],{"text":145,"type":58},"While the system is no longer active, the experiment reflects our broader approach as a studio: explore emerging technologies early, assess them critically, and implement them responsibly when they align with our values.",{"type":60,"children":147},[148,150,155],{"text":149,"type":58},"Explore how we apply this thinking across our ",{"url":151,"type":74,"children":152},"/services",[153],{"text":154,"type":58},"Services",{"text":156,"type":58}," and digital strategy work.",{"id":43,"documentId":158,"firstname":159,"lastname":160,"username":12,"email":161,"password":162,"resetPasswordToken":12,"registrationToken":12,"isActive":163,"blocked":164,"preferedLanguage":12,"createdAt":165,"updatedAt":166,"publishedAt":167,"locale":12},"exvdhgds80ypk8b0l1utsq7e","Andrew","Hillstead","andrew@psychoactive.co.nz","$2a$10$joP32hg/xKDRp5dVU89Wy.iHkRuY8OCvyoHwuVW85Ykg6s2yA6UIm",true,false,"2025-11-18T17:43:26.643Z","2025-11-18T23:22:05.488Z","2025-11-18T17:43:26.644Z",{"id":169,"metaTitle":170,"metaDescription":171,"shareImage":12},26,"Early Adoption of Crypto Payroll in NZ","How Psychoactive led early adoption of crypto payroll in New Zealand, embracing digital currency innovation in business.",{},1775224046417]