(ONN) – Ohio Treasurer Robert Sprague has suspended a program that allowed the use of cryptocurrency for business tax payments.

Sprague said an internal review determined the third-party payment processor for the OhioCrypto.com website, Bitpay, may be functioning as a financial transaction device.

If so, the company should have been chosen through the competitive selection process.

The Board of Deposit has asked Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost for a formal opinion on the matter.

Then-treasurer Josh Mandel launched the program in November, just before leaving office.

He said at the time that Ohio was the first state to accept tax payments via cryptocurrency.

Sprague will be the presenter at the Hancock County Republican Party’s First Friday Luncheon on Friday at noon at The Dock, behind St. Marks United Methodist Church at 800 South Main Street in Findlay.