Spending Bitcoin Remains A Problem Due To Merchant And Consumer Stagnation

Although the number of places to spend Bitcoin continues to increase, a lot of people are still not finding what they are looking for. Granted, some of the more eccentric requests will be difficult to fulfill with Bitcoin. But it also appears the majority of Bitcoin-accepting merchants are found in very similar sectors. What will it take to make Bitcoin acceptance more widespread?

Bitcoin Merchant Adoption Stagnates, Sort Of

There are quite a few different concerns to take into account when it comes to accepting Bitcoin. For a lot of merchant, it also has to pay off, preferably sooner or later. Accepting Bitcoin payments is the easy part, but getting customers to pay with cryptocurrency is something else entirely.

To put this into perspective, if Overstock had one Bitcoin transaction per month on average, it is doubtful they would still be accepting it today. While the company is a firm believer in cryptocurrency, there are only so many items one will purchase on a yearly basis. Such companies thrive on welcoming dozens of [new] customers who want to pay in Bitcoin.

A similar trend could be noted with nearly every initiative that ever wanted to promote Bitcoin usage. Restaurants will either stop accepting Bitcoin, or never actively promote it. In doing so, they make it much harder for themselves and potential customers to find out about this alternative form of payment. Getting involved is a two-way street of activity, yet it is often up to one party actively pushing the envelope.

Online retailers could really thrive from accepting Bitcoin payments, regardless of what they may sell. Online shopping is a booming market all over the world, and the demand for e-commerce platforms continues to grow. While it is unlikely Amazon will ever accept Bitcoin, a lot of items being sold there can be found on other platforms that might be inclined to accept cryptocurrency.

At the same time, there is also the problem of very few people spending Bitcoin on a regular basis. The majority of cryptocurrency holders is hoarding Bitcoin, which is not helping matters at all. Something will have to change before Bitcoin will ever become a mainstream currency, as spending it remains a key problem.

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