Back in 2010 a developer purchased 2 Papa John’s pizzas using 10,000 Bitcoins. Those Bitcoins at the time of writing are now worth a staggering $33,913,103.00.
Today a Bitcoin is worth $3,400 and rising. It is also now one of many cryptocurrencies holding around 45% of the total market capitalization of $124,000,000,000. So, no small change but I believe we are just getting started.
Currently on my recent straw poll ‘What is Bitcoin?’ to friends, family, Team Blend and even my accountant resulted in blank stares and farrowed brows to “It’s complicated, but I need to look into it” responses.
So, from my unscientific study with a limited number of people is anything to go by, Bitcoin and cryptocurrency has a long way to go before we see anything like mass adoption. When we reach that point, today’s valuations will seem like chump change.
I see the biggest obstacles to the masses adopting cryptocurrencies is fear and education. Let’s start with fear:
FEAR has two meanings:
• Forget Everything And Run
• Face Everything And Rise
Bitcoin, cryptocurrency, blockchain technology and the Tangle, I don’t know what these things do or what it all means. This is an irrational fear and shouldn’t hold you back.
For instance, you probably don’t know how the Internet works, but you use it every day.
You may not know about aerodynamics but trust in it enough to fly.
You may not know the ingredient in your fast food burger but still eat it (wait a minute… maybe you shouldn’t).
So, if you take the view point that you don’t have to fully grasp and understand all the complexities of cryptocurrencies, this will alleviate you from some of your fears.
Fear is an emotion often brought on by lack of education and understanding. So, this is an easy transition into the next thing that’s holding you back from getting into Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies…
Education
You may not know what ‘fractional reserve banking’ is. Google it (I’ll wait) and then tell me if you think cryptocurrencies are a good or bad idea.
Now you know what the banks do with your money you should Face Everything And Rise by seeking further education about the benefits of cryptocurrencies and don’t leave all your financial eggs in one basket.
I’m not advocating you take all your money out of the bank and invest it into cryptocurrencies. Diversification is the name of the game!
I find blockchains, tangle, cryptocurrencies and the new opportunities that are being created for a fairer decentralized society and innovative ways of doing business fascinating.
Here are the following three questions most people ask me about cryptocurrency: “Where can I buy Bitcoin”, “How can I keep my Bitcoin safe?” and “How can I pay using Bitcoin”.
Buy Bitcoin
There are many places online where you can buy Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. To keep this process simple and the word count of this post down, I would recommend Coinbase. https://www.coinbase.com/join/58e8d8927c7beb21ca46cd93.
If you sign up with my link and buy a minimum of $100 of digital currency, you and I will both get $10 of FREE Bitcoin.
When you sign up for an account, you’ll need your ID and be able to connect your bank account or debit card to purchase cryptocurrencies with Fiat money (USD, EUR etc.)
Can’t access Coinbase in your country, click here for alternative exchanges. https://www.buybitcoinworldwide.com/
How to Keep Your Bitcoin Safe
Think your money is safe in a bank? Yes, so did the populations of Cyprus, Greece, South Africa and Venezuala until their economies hyper-inflated or the banks locked their doors, turned off the ATM’s and bailed in depositors’ savings to prop themselves up.
Just like any asset, tangible or digital, you have to keep it safe. Do not leave your purchased cryptocurrency on an exchange. Instead, you need to transfer it to a wallet where it will be safe. Here you have two options to choose from, online or cold storage (offline).
Let’s look at online wallets first. Again, there are a number of services out there and I would recommend to start with, either Exodus (great interface) https://www.exodus.io/ or MyEtherWallet https://www.myetherwallet.com/
For greater safety, keep your cryptocurrency offline. To do this I recommend a hardware wallet like the Ledger Nano S https://www.ledgerwallet.com/r/06ac
How Can I Spend My Bitcoin?
Traditionally using a bank to send money to another person or business took 3-5 days to clear funds and incurred high bank fees and charges for the privilege. Now you can send or receive Bitcoin with a couple of clicks and at virtually no cost.
Paying someone for a product or service online using cryptocurrencies is fast and very cheap.
This is a huge game changer in a positive direction for any business owner. Who doesn’t want to save time and money?
There are a number of blockchain companies hard at work developing and solving the complexities of using cryptocurrencies in the real world. Bitcoin ATM’s are popping up and some providers like Xapo https://xapo.com/ and TenX https://www.tenx.tech/ issue debit cards funded by Bitcoin.
When it comes to running your local business or global empire, OmiseGO https://www.omise.co/go offer perhaps the best payment gateway solutions available today.
Some of the benefits include:
Virtual cash cards
Top-up over the counter and direct debit
Real-time settlement
Loyalty incentives
Reward points
Payments
Transfers
No or low fees
In Conclusion
So, I asked “When will Bitcoin be accepted on Main Street?” Well, I guess that depends on you. Hopefully this post has inspired you to look further into how cryptocurrencies can benefit your business and introduced you to new ways to get paid, and make payment using blockchain technology.
There’s no getting away from the fact that digital currencies are the future. Will your business be a pioneer in this space or will it be your competition?
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