The demand from consumers is increasing as the benefits of digitally native payments are becoming more apparent. Crypto can save both customers and businesses money and time and can also increase the security of transactions.
Crypto payments may not be mainstream yet, but more and more businesses are responding to the growing trend and are now accepting crypto payments either directly or indirectly through a third party.
For example, online retailer Overstock accepts crypto payments directly from any customer, around the globe instantly.
Overstock was one of the first major retailers to accept Bitcoin in 2014 and has continued to make a name for itself in the crypto space launching its own blockchain based capital markets solution, tZero. Others such as Microsoft, Dish, and Shopify have followed, accepting crypto payments in exchange for their goods and services.
Keep reading to learn how crypto payments offer benefits above fiat.
For Customers...
Less Fees
Banks make a lot of money off of your money. They charge fees for a variety of services like credit cards, savings accounts, ATM deposits and withdrawals, and more.
Managing your funds in a crypto wallet versus a bank offers significant savings. In most cases, opening and holding a crypto wallet, unless one chooses to purchase a hardware crypto wallet or prepaid card, and using it for crypto payments is completely free. Of course, this largely means that maintaining custody and responsibility of your crypto (through keys, seeds, hardware, or otherwise) is almost entirely up to you.
Owned Data
Financial institutions and retailers collect and retain a wide range of customer’s personal and financial information. Your bank tracks anything from your name, address and social security number to your net worth, investments, account balances, and credit score. On the other side of the transaction, retailers are collecting your browsing and purchasing history as well as your basic personal information.
With crypto, the only data needed to process payments is two strings of numbers – the customer’s address and the recipient's address. Of course, crypto transactions aren't completely anonymous because most blockchains are public, and personal information like your name and address are often still collected by retailers. Despite this, crypto transactions collect and retain significantly less personal information than standard credit card transactions.
The fewer intermediaries involved in a transaction, the fewer opportunities there are for your data to be commercialized. Not to mention, by making transactions peer-to-peer, business yield more profit and are less pressured to gain revenue through sales of customer data.
Borderless Payments
Crypto assets are borderless by nature. Bitcoin, for example, isn’t owned by a centralized body or issued by a single country. Bitcoin is decentralized which means it’s also global. Crypto payments can instantly cross borders with minimal fees and without the need for an intermediary like a remittance business or a bank. All that’s needed to process an international payment is an internet connection and a device like a cell phone or laptop.
Removing the third party from the equation opens the doors for millions of people around the globe without access to banks (“the unbanked”), giving them access to the global economy. The opportunity for crypto payment adoption in places like Nigeria where an estimated 100 million people have access to the internet, mostly through mobile devices, but only 31 million hold bank accounts, is huge.
For Businesses...
No Charge Backs
The current electronic payment system forces businesses to take a substantial risk when processing payments. When you purchase something with a credit card, you’ll often see your transaction as pending on your statement. That’s because your payment isn’t actually as instant as it appears. It has to travel between a customer, two banks, then finally, to the merchant.
The lack of speed and the need for multiple parties gives customers the chance to take an item only to cancel their payment before it’s processed, leaving the business high and dry. With a crypto payments, it can't be reversed once it is processed. It’s instant and permanent, which means companies don’t have to worry about chargebacks.
Loyal Customers
CheapAir – an American online travel agency – has reportedly processed more than $5 million in Bitcoin payments since 2013. The CEO of CheapAir Jeff Klee told Forbes that he likes "customers who pay in crypto because they are loyal." He also noted that they’re more likely to “buy higher ticket items.”
Many crypto users are seeking out businesses that accept crypto and are likely to be loyal to those who do. Not to mention, studies predict crypto assets could be used as a mainstream means of payment in the next decade. Businesses that get ahead of the curve will likely reap the benefits of mass adoption.
While crypto payments have a long way to go both in terms of adoption and scalability, the benefits to both businesses and customers are significant enough to radically improve the way transactions are conducted globally.
