The reason why Bitcoin didn’t replace traditional payment methods
The creators of Bitcoin wish it will become a substitute for the majority of centralized payment methods, but currently, this coin is used for long-term investments more often than for anything else. It seems that BTC’s fate was obvious from the very beginning, as the base technology won’t let it become a real competitor for such giants like MasterCard or Paypal.
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Of course, the main issue is connected with the number of transactions that the system can make. The maximal number is seven transactions per second, while, for example, Visa manages over 150 million transactions a day.
With the increasing number of users, the network of Bitcoin becomes bloated. The number of transactions has risen and trigger waiting times and fees growth. In January 2018, the waiting time hit the record and was equal to 11453 minutes, which is almost 20 days.
Tiny transactions with little fees were the main reason for such a stagnation. Miners didn’t want to verify transactions that would take time from them and give them a little revenue instead. That’s why fees started to grow, and here’s the purpose why Bitcoin owner wouldn’t like to buy coffee that costs $5 with Bitcoins and pay enormous fees for completing the transaction.
However, these times have gone, and the transaction takes a maximum of 30 minutes to be verified and charges dropped to a $1 mark. Experts suppose that this number is going to decrease as the Lightning Network technology is actively testing on the system now.
Still, there were large companies that stopped accepting Bitcoins after Winter 2018. Here are some examples: Stripe, Fiverr, Steam, and Dell.
Yet, many corporations accept Bitcoins.
Where can I spend my Bitcoins?
Online
Here are some online platforms that accept Bitcoins:
One of the first online retailers who started accepting Bitcoins is Overstock. You can buy everything from gadgets to furniture here and pay via Bitcoins.
Another retail giant who is accepting Bitcoin payments is Newegg.
Around 100 vendors in Etsy accept Bitcoin payments.
Microsoft allows users to add Bitcoins to their account.
Platforms to find BTC accepting companies
If you are in the UK, there’s a great platform - Where to spend Bitcoins UK, which shows pubs, shops, and other places where Bitcoin is accepted. Another platform, that informs us about Bitcoin payments, is useBitcoins: here you can find over 5000 companies where you can pay with BTC. A map for finding Bitcoin-accepting companies worldwide - Coinmap.
Online services
There is a bunch of Internet services, where you can spend your Bitcoins. Here are the most popular ones:
Sure, most of you know what WordPress is. This platform allows Bitcoin payments for plug-ins or some other tools.
In popular newspapers, like Chicago Sun-Times or Bloomberg, you can buy a subscription via BTC. Premium features in Reddit are also available via Bitcoin.
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Gaming platforms
There was a time we had to go to special stores to buy a video game, nowadays they are all on the Internet and are easy to download. The gaming industry is one of the most progressive presently, that’s why there are so many platforms that give an opportunity of buying games applying BTC. The most famous one that allows paying for games and having a subscription via Bitcoin is Xbox. Zynga, Big Fish Games, PlayStation Network, and many others have the Bitcoin payment method too.
Charity services
Have you ever donated money to some charity platforms? If yes, you understand that there’s a huge percent of charges in the sphere, so Bitcoins became a cost-efficient substitute for giving money to those who are in need. Bitcoin for Charity list is one of the websites that have a list of verified charities who accept Bitcoins.
Traveling
In most cases, the majority of people would like to save a part of their money if they have a chance to. Bitcoin payments made this real even in the aspect of traveling. Presently there are a lot of existing platforms, who accept BTC, like Webjet, AirBaltic, Virgin Galactic, and so on.
Offline
It’s a pity that there is just a little number of offline shops or service providers that are accepting Bitcoin payments, but still, there are some, and now we’ll tell about them.
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The mappable list is a service that has collected information about all transportation companies that accept Bitcoin.
Several food firms also accept BTC payments: Subway, Old Fitzroy, Burger Bear, and so on.
A majority of Bitcoin transactions are made when buying gift cards. Some portals where you can do this: eGifter, Yes to Bitcoins, pruse.io.