Will Large Companies Like Amazon and Starbucks Adopt Cryptocurrency?
Will Large Companies Like Amazon and Starbucks Adopt Cryptocurrency?
More companies are looking into utilizing blockchain technology as consumers voices are being heard. In a poll by lendedu, a majority (51.7%) of respondents answered that they would like to see Amazon implement virtual currency into its marketplace (Brown, 2018). Amazon has been able to gain the trust of consumers in handling financial and personal services and is in a position to be able to take a large market share from other financial institutions. Financial companies should be worried, as lendedu’s polls show that consumers would be willing to use services such as mortgages, personal and auto loans, checking and savings accounts, and investing products if Amazon were to support them (Brown, 2018).
(Graph source: https://lendedu.com/blog/amazon-virtual-currency-banking-insurance/ )
Starbucks has already stated that blockchain technology would be something that their company would implement and possibly be considering cashless stores (Zuckerman, 2018). However, Starbucks Executive Charmain Howard Schultz is not a fan of Bitcoin, but he believes that with their already existing app, proprietary virtual currency could be accomplished (Zuckerman, 2018).
My own opinion is that if a few of these dominant companies start utilizing and accepting virtual currency, then it will put a large enough dent into competitor market share that they will also be forced to look into implementing it. While some of these executives have been outspoken about being against crypto, I believe that they are finally coming to terms that this is what their consumers want. We have been becoming a cashless society for years. Those who refuse to believe that blockchain technology and virtual currency are still just a “craze” have their head in the clouds and refuse to evolve as a business. What do you think? What about small businesses that do not have the resources or the capital to implement virtual currency?
Sources:
Brown, Mike. (2018, February 27). Should Amazon Get Into Virtual Currency? Banking? Insurance? | LendEDU Survey. Retrieved from https://lendedu.com/blog/amazon-virtual-currency-banking-insurance/
Zuckerman, Molly Jane. (2018, March 4). Poll Shows People Want An Amazon Cryptocurrency, Starbucks Hints Of A Blockchain App. Retrieved from https://cointelegraph.com/news/poll-shows-people-want-an-amazon-cryptocurrency-starbucks-hints-of-a-blockchain-app