What is Needed for Cryptocurrencies to Start Replacing Fiat Cash in Everyday Life?

It’s easy to forget that cryptocurrencies have been around since the launch of Bitcoin in 2009. Since then, we’ve seen a huge amount of progress and various predictions of digital money going mainstream. What are the main factors that will determine whether cryptos finally become a part of our daily lives?

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More Adoption in Retail and Entertainment

One of the common issues in the early days of these tokens was the perceived difficulty in finding ways to use them. While the first commercial Bitcoin transaction came way back in 2010, when Laszlo Hanyecz famously paid for two pizzas with 10,000 BTC, it’s not become the widely-used currency we hoped for. Having said that, the recent rise to over $100,000 has encouraged more retailers to accept BTC tokens as payment.

Tesla has confirmed that it will accept BTC again, while Ferrari has also confirmed that people can buy their sports cars using crypto. This recent report published by Reuters suggests that leading luxury brands may start accepting Bitcoin, with Tag Heuer, Balenciaga, and Gucci among the brands that have already tried this approach. Renowned French department store Printemps has already confirmed that it’s linking up with the giant Binance exchange to accept digital payments including BTC and Ethereum.

Online entertainment is another area where crypto has been making inroads and may continue to do so. Twitch and Microsoft are among the companies that have been accepting tokens for some time. Sling TV offers a streaming service that can be paid for using various digital assets through the BitPay service provider. 

Online casinos are known for their range of payment methods, as we can see in the banking section at Sky City Casino, where e-wallets like Skrill and bank cards are already accepted. With players used to depositing and withdrawing in a variety of ways to play slots and table games, the introduction of cryptos seems feasible. The enhanced security and speedier transactions over the blockchain add extra reasons why this could be a smart move that fits the safety measures and responsible approach of the online casino model.

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Lower Volatility and Ease of Use

There are two important reasons that people have traditionally thought twice before buying crypto. In the early days, buying BTC and other tokens was complex and even just holding them in a wallet could be troublesome, as we can see by the fact that an estimated BTC has been lost according to a report from Unchained Capital. The process of buying and holding tokens has become a lot more accessible in recent times, with trading platforms and decentralized exchanges accepting a range of payment methods.

In terms of volatility, this is one of the areas that make potential users worry about losing their money, while sudden price rises convince many to hold onto their digital assets as an investment rather than use them as currency. BTC’s volatility has generally been higher than traditional assets including stocks and gold and although some analysts believe that Bitcoin may be becoming less volatile as its market cap grows, this is yet to be proven.

The technology that allows big and small businesses to accept crypto as a payment method has advanced at the same time that it’s become easier for the public to buy tokens. This means that it’s likely to become more widely used as a fast, secure banking method with low fees, although whether it ever truly achieves mainstream adoption isn’t yet clear.