Blockchain and cryptocurrency is a brave new world that has created a lot of disruptions in many different industries. The digital currencies have grown from virtually nothing to global industry recognition in just a few years.
But the idea of cryptocurrency is still a controversial one – a digital form of money that relies on encryption technology to transfer value over the internet without the involvement of governments or a centralized bank seems far-fetched to some business owners.
Nevertheless, cryptocurrencies are outgrowing niche usages and finding applications in businesses. Many business owners are already embracing digital currencies such as Bitcoin as a means of payment.
Is this something that could add value to your company? Well, it depends on the nature of your business, but generally speaking, you could benefit a great deal from cryptocurrencies in various ways.
Here are five solid advantages of adopting cryptocurrency in your business.
Save time and money
Banks can take up to 10 days (one-third of a month!) to complete a transfer. Again, by eliminating the middleman, digital currencies can be transferred almost instantaneously. How much time it takes depends on the cryptocurrency that you pick, but still, the difference is quite negligible when compared to the time banking systems take up.
Did you know that it is estimated that the US merchants alone have paid more than $78 billion in the form of credit and debit card related processing fees? The decentralized nature of cryptocurrencies means there is no need for a bank or any other central control, which translates to lower fees.
Presently, cryptocurrency processing rates often fall below 1% while the conventional methods require at least 3%. This implies that adopting digital money could help your business save about 2-5% on every transaction. No more financial institutions digging into your hard-earned revenue.
Free yourself from fraud and chargebacks
Chargebacks are meant to protect customers from fake merchants, bad deals, and identity theft. However, it is unfortunate how they are often abused by fraudsters.
You could compare cryptocurrencies to cash in the sense that you either have the funds ready for payment or you don’t. What’s more, all cryptocurrency transactions are final because the information is added to the blockchain through mining and is not possible to hide or reverse it. Also, the system verifies funds in a way that makes it close to impossible for someone to spend more than she has.
That said, crypto transactions are transparent, tamper-proof, and permanent. Merchants who accept cryptocurrency no longer have to worry about the potential of fraud through chargebacks.
Andrew Lissimore, CEO of Headphones.com, pointed out on Reddit that, ever since the company started accepting Nano, it had faster transactions and it no longer had to worry about Visa or Mastercard blaming fraud cases on them.
He said, “it has given us the freedom to ship our products to places that we would normally avoid because of fraud concerns.”
Globally acceptable currency
Cryptocurrencies are not bound to your geographical location or that of your consumer; they are entirely borderless. The people in Asia use the same Bitcoin as those in America, Africa, and Europe. Anyone from anywhere can use cryptocurrency to make payments to any part of the world, and the rates will remain the same.
There are lots of benefits derived from this aspect, especially if you export services and goods or purchase them from other countries. For one, digital currencies empower your business to appeal to a truly global audience. And you get to avoid those high costs that come with foreign transaction fees and exchange rates.
Expand your customer base
The number of cryptocurrency users is increasing as more and more people learn about it, embrace it, and even start making purchases with it. It’s no wonder that companies, such as SwissBorg, are mushrooming to help with the management of crypto assets and provide information on investment solutions.
As more people adopt cryptocurrencies each day, it would be really helpful for your business if you started accepting them.
Not to forget, the users and investors are very passionate about cryptocurrencies and love to hear that existing businesses are adopting it. Accepting this mode of payment is already free marketing. You will be surprised to find many new customers going out of their way to support your choice to accept crypto by making purchases.
You could argue that it is still kind of a niche market, but rest assured this won’t be the case for much longer. And offering your customers a wider range of payment options will increase the chances that they follow through with their purchase.
According to a recent study, 28% of cart abandonment cases come as a result of a lack of the payment option that the consumer wanted to use.
Paperwork is gradually dying out
With the popularity of blockchain technology, digital wallets, and cryptocurrencies increasing exponentially over the last few years, it is not hard to see that at some point in the future, we will experience a decline in the use of paper, including paper money, in the day-to-day business practices.
Paper and long and complicated paperwork procedures will most likely disappear soon, thanks to the revolutionary technology.
Conclusion
However overwhelming it might seem for a small business to adopt digital currency payment options, it is only wise to try and embrace this change. Becoming an early adopter of cryptocurrencies will allow you to familiarize with it quickly.
Resisting the change might as well be just a matter of delaying the inevitable. What’s more, you want to set yourself apart from competitors by being among the first to join the revolution.
Cryptocurrencies and the underlying blockchain technology are slowly taking over in many ways. And it’s not just about the online transactions. Talk of cybersecurity, voting, crowdfunding, banking, ride sharing, government, and so much more!