Beenz.com seeks buyer

Web currency pioneer Beenz.com is seeking a buyer or additional funding as it tries to keep its U.K. operations afloat, a spokesman said Thursday.

The New York-based company, like other e-currency sites, is reeling from the one-two punch of a declining economic environment at the same time credit card companies have tightened their grip on consumer transactions on the Web.

The company, which raised about $80 million in four rounds of funding before venture capitalists began slamming the door on Internet start-ups, said it is already in discussions with "several potential" partners that may help the long-term viability of the e-currency firm.

In the United Kingdom, Beenz is already restructuring and reducing corporate redundancies.

The company closed offices in Sweden and France, but continues operations in the U.K., Italy, China and Japan, according to a company spokesman.

Despite the gloomy business environment, Beenz is pushing forward with its RewardzCodes products, which allow consumers to earn beenz, but at the cost of providing a tracking code supplied by manufacturers interested in gathering statistical information on customers and their needs.

In December, Beenz said it would lay off 25 people from its New York office in December, with other cuts coming from around the world.