Albeit there are several things one can do with Bitcoin, there are some things that are not possible yet. Depending on where one lives, the usability of Bitcoin in its purest form is relatively limited, or somewhat gaining mainstream interest. This situation might change over time, though, depending on when people start to see the value of Bitcoin.
This is one of the most prominent examples of why Bitcoin is not used by the masses just yet. Whether one rents or owns their house or apartment, it is incredibly unlikely it can be paid for in Bitcoin directly. Unless one has a landlord who knows what Bitcoin is and how it works, but those are very hard to come by in most regions of the world.
Most regions of the world pay rent or their bank loan through recurring bank account transactions. The Bitcoin protocol does not have a native option for recurring payments unless one goes through a centralized third-party service provider. Not exactly the best way to spend Bitcoin directly, as it also creates more entry barriers for other people and institutions to deal with Bitcoin directly.
Albeit it is possible to buy groceries with Bitcoin – through a Bitcoin debit card, at least – smaller purchases are not possible in its pure Bitcoin from. Buying bread, or a sandwich, or even a slice of pizza with Bitcoin is not possible unless through some very localized efforts. This is rather strange, considering Bitcoin lends itself perfectly for smaller transactions.
Merchants do not see the value of Bitcoin transactions for smaller payments just yet. At the same time, there no surging demand from consumers to pay these purchases with Bitcoin either. Go out and try to pitch the concept of Bitcoin payments to your local fast food shop – that is not part of a chain – and see how they respond. The most common answer is “why would I?” There it lots of education to be done, to say the least.
Albeit there are some regions in the world where users can pay their taxi ride or public transport with Bitcoin directly, these options are still relatively limited. In a way, it would make sense to use Bitcoin in these situations, though, as paying a cabbie or bus driver needs to be quick and convenient.
Once Bitcoin becomes a standard payment method for public transport and ride-hailing opportunities, it will only be a matter of time until cryptocurrency takes off. However, for now, there seems no indication of any regions doing so on a wide scale. Whoever can crack the code to this problem first will have a significant advantage in the Bitcoin world, though.
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