There has been a great deal of discussion about the ways in which Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have been used to purchase illicit items and access hideous corners of the web. The reality, however, is that cryptocurrencies will be mostly used for legal activities in 2022. Although there had been previous attempts to create cryptocurrencies, the first successful digital ‘coin’ was Bitcoin. Bitcoin makes use of a concept that was revolutionary at the time: the blockchain. The blockchain ensures that all Bitcoin in circulation is fully connected, with the value of each ‘coin’ is relative to the value of all others.
Bitcoin was made publicly available in 2009 and has spawned a huge field of copycats. Bitcoin is generally more secure than many of its competitor currencies. Bitcoin is somewhat limited in terms of the number of transactions its servers can handle. Only seven global transactions per second can be made using the currency – far fewer than can be made using systems like Visa. This article is a brief rundown of the kinds of things that bitcoin is commonly used for within the bounds of legality.
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Online Shopping
A growing number of ecommerce websites have started to accept Bitcoin. The Ecommerce platform Shopify –one of the most widely used platforms for creating online stores – now enables shop owners to accept cryptocurrencies. Oddly, one of the first adopters of Bitcoin payment in the retail world was Home Depot. The DIY megastore started accepting Bitcoin in January 2017. The inherent volatility of Bitcoin makes ecommerce transactions a little more complicated, but it should be fine if you (or the site you are buying from) can calculate the approximate current value of the currency.
Sports Betting
Online sports betting is a vast industry – and one perfectly suited for the adoption of cryptocurrencies. Visit this page to see the huge range of betting sites that now accept Bitcoin in lieu of traditional currencies. Bitcoin is perfectly suited to online betting because it allows for anonymous and secure payments. Those sites that do accept and payout in Bitcoin typically operate just like any other online bookmaker in most ways.
Online Services
Emerging online service markets were well placed to be early adopters of Bitcoin. Many Virtual Private Network providers – like Nord VPN – accept digital currency. Because Bitcoin was developed in part to obscure the identity of owners, it is a perfect fit for VPN service providers that deal in assurances of privacy. Popular communications platforms like Twitch and Reddit also accept Bitcoin for premium features. Some traditional service providers like the telecommunications giant AT&T have also begun accepting cryptocurrencies as well as traditional money. It is highly likely that other online service providers will follow in their footsteps soon.
Travel
Bitcoin is a currency that pays no heed to borders. This makes it a perfect fit for travel companies wanting to accept money from people overseas without incurring additional costs. Expedia – one of the largest travel booking agencies – now accepts Bitcoin for hotel bookings and is seeking to introduce cryptocurrency payments for flights in the future. Virgin Galactic, which is touted as the first commercial space travel company, also accepts Bitcoin. Paying for your trip to space using a cryptocurrency seems like the ultimate expression of futurist capitalism.
Non-Profit Donations
Several non-profit organizations accept Bitcoin donations. Perhaps the most fascinating story regarding Bitcoin non-profit donations is that of Wikileaks. Before the creator of Bitcoin mysteriously vanished from public life, he (or possibly she) left behind a warning to Wikileaks urging them not to store bitcoin for fear that it would bring unnecessary negative attention to the new cryptocurrency from government organizations. Wikileaks was – and is – a controversial organization that exists to expose unsavory government actions. For this reason, it has long been subjected to financial constraints by governments around the world.
By accepting Bitcoin, Wikileaks hoped to circumvent the impact of financial constraints. Although it failed to raise much money using Bitcoin initially, it has since become one of its most important funding streams. Both Bitcoin and Wikileaks share origins in the Cypherpunk movement of the late 1990s and early 2000s. They have become somewhat entwined – with Wikileaks being almost unable to run without donations sent in Bitcoin form.
Other, less controversial non-profit organizations also accept bitcoin. The Wikimedia Foundation that governs Wikipedia famously started accepting Bitcoin relatively early. Donating using Bitcoin enables people to remain anonymous while giving financial aid.
Education
A select group of higher education institutions accepts Bitcoin as well as regular currencies. As well as some more obscure institutions such as the University of Nicosia in Cyprus, prestigious Universities like Princeton and Berkley have started to accept Bitcoin. Education is always a good investment. If you have invested well in Bitcoin, you might be able to finally afford the education of your dreams without having to transfer your crypto into regular cash. The problem with making regular tuition payments using Bitcoin is that universities typically take payment in actual value. Since the value of Bitcoin is highly volatile, this means that you will have to part with differing amounts of cryptocurrency every time you make a payment. Complex – yes – but not impossibly so.
Luxury Vehicles
Some people have a large amount of money stored in the form of Bitcoin. People that invested in the cryptocurrency early and actually kept hold of their assets found themselves bathing in bathtubs of digital cash. An investment of 1000 dollars ten years ago would theoretically lead to around 2 million dollars worth of Bitcoin in the present day. Some luxury vehicle companies have started to profit from these so-called ‘crypto millionaires’. Boat and luxury car brokers are beginning to accept Bitcoin for large purchases. By accepting Bitcoin, these companies hope to lure in people that would otherwise have no way of liquidizing their large stocks of digital currency and also save international money transfer fees inherent in traditional banking.
