Saturday, 21 February 2015

Bitcoin in Retail Transactions

A significant number of vendors have accepted Bitcoin transactions. Yet, the digital currency still lacks impetus in retail transactions.

There is no clear indication that bitcoin can finally be used in purchasing principal commodities and services. While merchants like Microsoft, Expedia, and online retailer Overstock.com recognize the crypto currency, there has been very minimal increase in purchases making use of the bitcoin.

The truth is this currency is used mainly for Internet gambling, procurement of illegal merchandise and services, and pure speculation.

Researchers from the Federal Reserve disclosed in a recent market analysis that bitcoin is hardly used for payments of mainstream products.

Last week, it was recorded that almost 200,000 bitcoins swapped hands daily. However, only less than 5, 000 bitcoins or approximately $1.2 million in cost were utilized for retail operations. A crypto currency technology firm based in 
Hong Kong disclosed that retail volume last year was predominantly flat.

Consumers are not inclined to adopt the currency due to the popularity and convenience of credit cards. Besides, bitcoins are seen more as investments instead of currencies that can be used to buy real goods or pay for services.

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