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Apart from their surging popularity as attractive investable assets, cryptocurrency(ies) can also help businesses grow and scale up tremendously.
Businesses must evolve with time. They must incorporate the best practices to reduce costs, accelerate payments, and maximize profits.
But it so happens that current commercial setups hinder the progress of firms. Especially those that are small and medium in size.
Even self-employed professionals (read freelancers) who work alone to cover daily costs and expenditures have a tough time getting their work’s worth due to undue interference by third party ‘payment processing’ companies.
In such a scenario, cryptocurrencies can greatly prove beneficial for individuals and companies.
Their decentralized nature guarantees the smooth operation of businesses without many roadblocks.
So, without further ado, let’s dive in and examine the business benefits of digital currencies!
Low Transaction Fees
Business transactions involve multiple money transfers done throughout the month, and even during the day (in some cases).
The transaction fees in such transactions need to be lowest for firms and individuals to realize their appropriate worth ( profits + operational costs).
Generally, that’s not possible due to intermediary payment companies deducting their commissions for ‘processing transactions’. Cryptocurrencies eliminate the need for middle-man payment processing.
Their underlying distributed peer-to-peer technology (also called blockchain) ensures low transaction costs and direct and transparent exchange of funds between two transacting parties.
Global Acceptance
By their very design, cryptocurrencies have a global presence. Bitcoin (BTC) and many other cryptocurrencies have strong communities backing them across the world.
That’s because of their underlying mathematics and algorithm-driven protocols.
One doesn’t need an elaborate setup to send and receive crypto funds. Just a simple wallet, that’s all. Every transaction can take place from that particular wallet.
Another way to access cryptocurrency assets in India is by buying/trading them on WazirX. To know more about that in detail, check out the video below:
Complete Ownership of Funds
Often product sellers and service providers have their accounts frozen by banks or their business accounts shut down by centralized payment companies.
Bitcoin (BTC) or any other cryptocurrency solves this. Due to the decentralized nature of crypto-asset networks, there are no hold-ups. Fund transfers happen after consensus is achieved between network participants.
This also eliminates the risk of ‘double spending’. Double spending is a situation where fraudulent folks can duplicate a certain transaction and extract the same amount as that involved in the exchange.
With cryptocurrencies, your payments and your funds remain your own.
Investment Benefit
Cryptocurrencies can be accepted as payments but unlike usual state-backed currencies, they can double up as investments too. And why?
Because over a period of 11 years since the inception, the cryptocurrency market cap has grown from absolutely nothing to $300 billion.
During the famous 2017 rally, cryptocurrencies had a combined valuation of around $850 billion!
Investors have reaped a six-figure return on their bitcoin (BTC) investment from 2010 to date.
New Customers, New Business Prospects
For small or medium-sized firms, accepting cryptocurrencies can open up new business opportunities. Early cryptocurrency adopters/users can become prospective customers for purchasing goods or services.
This, in turn, will accelerate the process of acceptance of innovation as per the graph below:
As of date, companies and organizations have already joined the ‘businesses adopting crypto’ bandwagon. Some of the notable names include:
- Microsoft – Global IT giant, Microsoft accepts bitcoin (BTC) payments for Xbox games, music, purchasable content from the Windows store. Bitcoin can be added as a balance to the Microsoft Account which in turn can be used to make payments later. However, Office 365 subscriptions cannot be purchased with bitcoin.
- WordPress – One of the largest blogging websites in the world, WordPress permits users to conduct BTC transactions. Various plugins can be integrated with the option of bitcoin. WordPress.com grants complete flexibility for BTC payments, which makes it a prominent supporter of the first virtual currency.
Other Business Partnerships
Organizations like Samsung are amongst the first multinational corporations in the world to expose blockchain-based solutions to users.
Recently, the Korean electronics giant partnered with the Stellar Development Foundation to allow blockchain developers to produce Stellar based apps for Galaxy Smartphone users.
Apart from the Samsung Blockchain Keystore also supports apps built on TRON, Ethereum, and Klaytn.
Ripple is a payments company that has onboarded over 200 banks and financial institutions to conduct cross-border financial settlements on its proprietary payments network, RippleNet.
RippleNet uses the cryptocurrency XRP to process transactions.
The business applications for cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology are manifold. The world is slowly warming up to the idea of crypto assets pervading the current financial and industrial systems.
It’s only a matter of time before digital currencies become a way of life just like email and the internet.
Frequently Asked Questions
How To Invest In Cryptocurrency?
There are two ways of investing in cryptocurrency, mining and via exchanges. Cryptocurrency mining is considered the procedure of verifying and adding transactions to the blockchain public ledger. Another option is via cryptocurrency exchanges. Exchanges generate money by collecting transaction fees, but there are alternative websites where you can interact directly with other users who want to trade cryptocurrencies.
How Many Cryptocurrencies Are There?
There are over 5000 other digital currencies available on the internet in addition to Bitcoins. The only problem is that they haven't gotten the users' attention. Besides Bitcoins, a few other digital currencies have gained popularity among users. It's been more than ten years since Bitcoins were first released, and now they've achieved new heights thanks to their phenomenal success.
Is Cryptocurrency Safe To Invest In?
Cryptocurrency investments are subject to market risks, but if sufficient security measures are not taken, trading accounts can be maliciously accessed. Investments come with risks and uncertainties, and we cannot claim that any digital currency investment is risk-free. Buying and selling cryptocurrencies can be risky even if the trader is knowledgeable about the market and treats their coins carefully.
Which Cryptocurrency Is Best To Invest In 2021?
Many altcoins are flourishing to invest in. Some cryptocurrencies with great potential are Ether, Ripple, Tron, and more. Investors are trying to diversify their portfolios and are flocking to the leading cryptocurrencies. Many growing businesses are already accepting cryptocurrency as acceptable payment methods.
What Is Crypto?
Crypto or a cryptocurrency is a digital currency protected by cryptography, making counterfeiting and double-spending nearly impossible. Blockchain technology is used to produce cryptocurrencies (a distributed ledger enforced by a distributed network of computers). Cryptocurrencies are distinct in that a government does not issue them. The word "cryptocurrency" refers to the encryption methods employed to keep digital currencies and the network secure.
Who Invented Cryptocurrency?
Satoshi Nakamoto invented cryptocurrencies and the technology that makes them function in 2009. The presumed pseudonymous individual or persons who invented Bitcoin used this identity. In addition, Nakamoto created the first blockchain database. Even though many people have claimed to be Satoshi Nakamoto, the person's identity remains unknown.
How To Invest In Cryptocurrency Stocks?
Cryptocurrency can be purchased in two ways: through mining or exchanges. The process of confirming and adding transactions to the blockchain public ledger is known as cryptocurrency mining. Cryptocurrency exchanges are another option. Exchanges make money by charging transaction fees, but there are alternative platforms where you may communicate directly with other cryptocurrency traders.
What Is Cryptocurrency?
A cryptocurrency is a digital currency secured by encryption, due to which chances of activities such as counterfeiting and double-spending taking place get close to impossible. Cryptocurrencies get created on blockchain technology ( a distributed ledger enforced by a distributed network of computers). Cryptocurrencies are unique in that they do not get issued by any central authority. The term "cryptocurrency" comes from the encryption techniques used to keep digital currencies and the network safe.
Is Pi Cryptocurrency Safe?
Pi Network (PI) is the newest digital token to catch the cryptocurrency community's interest, even before it has wholly debuted. Some users see it as a chance to get engaged in a cryptocurrency from the beginning and profit in the future, similar to how early Bitcoin adopters made huge profits by mining and keeping the coin. Other users have compared Pi to a worthless multi-level marketing (MLM) scheme.
What Is Virtual Currency?
Virtual currency is a type of uncontrolled digital currency that can only be used online. It is exclusively stored and transacted using designated software, mobile or computer applications, or unique digital wallets, and all transactions are conducted through secure, dedicated networks. Because digital currency is just currency issued by a bank in digital form, virtual currency is not the same as a digital currency. Virtual currency, unlike ordinary money, is based on a trust structure and cannot be issued by a central bank or other banking regulatory organization.
Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency is not a legal tender and is currently unregulated. Kindly ensure that you undertake sufficient risk assessment when trading cryptocurrencies as they are often subject to high price volatility. The information provided in this section doesn't represent any investment advice or WazirX's official position. WazirX reserves the right in its sole discretion to amend or change this blog post at any time and for any reasons without prior notice.
