As an e-commerce store owner, you want to provide users with as many payment options as possible, but you don’t want to increase your own risk for fraudulent payments. Increased options for your customers mean increased conversions and sales.

Bitcoin has hit the mainstream, and several large organizations, including Amazon, have discussed offering it as a payment option. Large organizations have the budget to maintain risk, but small businesses must limit as much of it as possible. If you’re considering bitcoin for your customers, this article contains some pros and cons.

• Pros of Bitcoin Payments for your Businesses
• The Cons of Bitcoin as a Business Payment
• Is it Safe to pay Through Bitcoin?
• How to secure your Bitcoin?
• What kind of Businesses are Accepting Bitcoin?
• How can a Small Business Accept Bitcoin?
• What can be Bought with Bitcoin?

Pros of Bitcoin Payments for your Businesses

Admittedly, Bitcoin is not for every small business. There are some small businesses where it would not make sense to accept Bitcoin. However, the following benefits of Bitcoin may be worth considering.

Read Also: Here’s how you can Practically use Bitcoin Today

Cross-border payments are slow – Businesses that accept payments internationally have few options. Most of them are slow. Bank payments can take days. Checks are inefficient. And most online payment systems such as PayPal are not accepted in every country. Bitcoin, however, is a peer-to-peer payment system that allows one party to send payment to another with no third-party facilitator. Payments are made within minutes. All you need is a cryptocurrency wallet.

No chargebacks – Small business merchants are always in danger of credit card chargebacks. That is not the case with Bitcoin. Since it is peer-to-peer, no third party can return the payment to the customer. That decision is the merchant’s alone.

Lower transaction fees – Other payment methods have huge transaction fees. PayPal’s fees can be over 4% (https://www.paypal.com/us/webapps/mpp/merchant-fees and https://www.paypal.com/au/webapps/mpp/paypal-seller-fees). Many payment processors have set up fees and include a flat fee per transaction in addition to a percentage of the transaction. Small business merchants can find Bitcoin exchanges with fees under 1% per transaction. If payment is peer-to-peer, there is no fee at all. However, you may have to purchase a crypto wallet.

Millennials are hip to Bitcoin – While many older people are averse to new technologies, especially cryptocurrencies, younger generations are more accepting. In many cases, they prefer it. A business that caters to younger people could benefit by expanding customer payment options.

Monetary diversification – Older generations have already been trained to diversify assets. Many investors live by the philosophy. Until now, monetary diversification meant holding several national currencies and engaging in foreign currency exchange. Thanks to Bitcoin, monetary diversification now includes a type of currency that can be used both as a form of payment and as an investment class that stores value.

Bitcoin may be a hedge against inflation – Fiat currency loses value over time as more is printed. Bitcoin has a cap of 21 million, which means it has a limited capacity. This limitation may make the value of Bitcoin is a hedge against monetary inflation.

Bitcoin is also an investment – A small business can accept Bitcoin as payment and convert it the same day to fiat currency, but it isn’t required to do so. Bitcoin can be held indefinitely, and if the value increases over the amount of the payment received, that value is stored until the Bitcoin is sold or the market turns. While this could result in capital gains taxes, those taxes do not have to be paid until the asset is sold.

The Cons of Bitcoin as a Business Payment

While there are many upsides to accepting Bitcoin for small business payment, there are some downsides. Consider these:

Market volatility – There is no regulation of cryptocurrencies. Around the globe, authorities are discussing how to implement sound regulation, but, as of now, market forces dictate the price of Bitcoin and there is wild volatility from day to day. If the value of Bitcoin goes down before your small business exchanges it for fiat currency, you could lose money on the sale. 

Security concerns – Cryptocurrency exchanges have lost millions of dollars in hacks. While Bitcoin is more secure than some payment methods, caution is advised, and experts warn that the safest and most secure storage is offline in what is called a paper wallet.

Every transaction is public – Bitcoin transactions are recorded on a public ledger. This ensures transparency, often considered a Bitcoin payment benefit. However, because each transaction is recorded on a public ledger that anyone can see, if a wallet address identification is leaked or hacked, that’s a major security concern. The onus for protecting that information is on the wallet owner.

Wallet addresses are unrecoverable – If a small business merchant loses the owner access key to their wallet, those keys are not recoverable. There is no central record of wallet addresses or cryptographic access keys. The only person who has it is the wallet, and that means it must be safeguarded. If it is lost, any Bitcoin stored in the wallet is gone forever.

Small businesses should do their homework before accepting Bitcoin. There are many pros to doing so, but ensure it makes sense for your business before deciding to accept Bitcoin as payment.

Is it Safe to pay Through Bitcoin?

In its ten years of history, Bitcoin, when used and stored correctly, has proven itself to be a reliable financial instrument when it comes to storing value, secure borderless peer-to-peer money transfers, and accessibility.

The protocol itself is sturdy enough to withhold even the most sophisticated attacks, and most of the bad news surrounding Bitcoin hacks are due to the third-party service providers like centralized exchanges, wallet developers, or private key mismanagement.

Of course, as with every other type of money, there are certain issues Bitcoin users need to know if they want to protect their wealth. These include Bitcoin price volatility, secure storage of cryptocurrency, use of insecure third-party services, and cybersecurity threats like hacking.

At the same time, we could also raise a question whether it is safe to use dollars and other traditional finance tools, as most of the money laundering and other nefarious activities are still conducted using traditional money. The conventional financial systems have proven to be prone to economic bubbles and crises, and the government-backed money tends to significantly devalue over time.

Therefore, it is safe to use Bitcoin, especially if you’re willing to take responsibility for protecting your funds on your shoulders. And since the technology is still in development, it requires time and effort to learn how to handle it.

So, how do you safely handle your Bitcoins?

How to secure your Bitcoin?

Storing Bitcoins

These are the vital steps to ensure that you’re following the best Bitcoin security practices:

Rule number one is to take good care of your secret “private key” – the password for accessing and using your Bitcoins. If the private key is secure and no one else can get to it, then your Bitcoins are safe. But keep in mind that if you lose your private key, even you yourself won’t be able to access your funds.

Choose a reliable wallet that fits you, as it will act as a bank account to access your funds. They can be stored both online or offline.

Exchanging and spending

When spending or exchanging your Bitcoins, it’s important to choose the most reliable and trustworthy services. If you fall victim to fraud using a traditional bank card, laws and regulations may help you recover any losses. For Bitcoin, such protection is yet to come.

Also, remember that payments with Bitcoins are non-repudiable – once you pay, the money’s gone. If you make a mistake – say you pay USD 222.2 instead of USD 22.22 or send the Bitcoins to the wrong address – you can only rely on the goodwill of the receiver to get your money back.

Anonymity issues

You may have heard about the anonymity Bitcoin users enjoy. Well, it’s only partly true. While everyone can track any wallet and its content on the network, they can’t identify the owner of the wallet. Bitcoin wallets and transactions aren’t linked to personal data or identity.

But there are alternate ways to find out the owner’s identity. For example, you may be required to reveal your identity when registering on a cryptocurrency exchange. That way all your transactions from the exchange may be traced back to your wallet.

Still, if you need stronger privacy, the TOR browser, and other privacy solutions. There are many privacy-oriented Bitcoin wallets, too, as well as other cryptocurrencies with integrated privacy and anonymity features, such as Dash, Monero and Zcash.

Hacking

Other Bitcoin risks are somewhat hard to control, but it’s still important to know them and follow the latest news since the technology is still in development.

One theoretical risk is a 51% attack on the Bitcoin blockchain. In theory, if a group of Bitcoin miners controlled 51% or more of all the hashing power running the Bitcoin blockchain, they could potentially undo several latest transactions.

In fact, there was a moment, in 2014, when the mining pool Ghash.io came close to obtaining 51% of the whole Bitcoin network. But then some members of the pool voluntary left, decreasing its share and influence. Still, Bitcoin experts believe a “51% attack” is unlikely as its cost would exceed the potential benefits of the attack, and it would do little to no harm for more than 99% of the blockchain users.

Such attack can’t be used to steal Bitcoins or change older transactions. It affects only the most recent transactions, and the efficiency of the network could be disrupted for a moment, too. Essentially, any 51% attack would last for a short time before being quickly fixed by the Bitcoin community. The biggest damage would be done to the cryptocurrency’s image.

Hacking poses a bigger risk when it comes to cryptocurrency exchanges, most of which are not regulated and, as history has shown, are hacked quite regularly.

The threat of a hack of the Bitcoin network may become real once a quantum computer is built, as it would be much more powerful than today’s computers. But building it is expected to take years, and ways to withstand such attack is already in the works.

Regulations

Another key issue to watch are regulations. More and more countries are likely to start introducing Bitcoin laws, which could affect how the cryptocurrency can be bought and spent, its legal and tax implications. Alongside the rules, new regulations may also grant Bitcoin users more rights, protection, and clarity.

In addition to the precautions, make sure to see these ten tips on Bitcoin security. If you follow the most common Bitcoin security rules, you are likely to use Bitcoin in the safest and most secure manner.

After all, Bitcoin itself constitutes the safest money protocol ever built. Nevertheless, there are third-party services and individuals don’t use adequate measures to secure themselves.

What kind of Businesses are Accepting Bitcoin?

Bitcoin has taken over the cryptocurrency market. It’s the largest and most well-known digital currency today. Many large companies are accepting Bitcoin as a legitimate source of funds.

Car companies that accept bitcoin

If you are both a car enthusiast and cryptocurrency holder, we’ve got some good news for you. The following car companies are now accepting cryptocurrencies as payment in exchange for vehicles.

• Post Oak Motor Cars
• Classic Recreations

Web hosts that accept bitcoin

If you are working on a project that involves web hosting services, this might be a good list to consider. Web hosting services allow individuals and businesses to create and post web pages or websites on the Internet. 

There are numerous web hosting companies providing technologies and services that now also offer domains and hostings in exchange for your bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

• Hostinger
• HostWinds
• Gandi
• Directnic
• Unihost
• Cinfu
• QHoster
• EasyDNS
• Porkbun
• HostSailor
• Namesilo
• Netcetera
• Chunkhost

Travel companies that accept bitcoin

For those who are interested in traveling, there are some well-known global travel companies that are now offering flight tickets and even hotel accommodations in exchange for bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. 

• Expedia
• More stamps Global
• WebJet
• BTCTrip
• Bitcoin.travel
• Future.Travel
• AirTreks

Airlines that accept bitcoin

Cryptocurrency has also made its way to one of the busiest spheres in the world: the tourism industry. Making a direct booking with your preferred airline and not going through a travel agency is now possible. Some airlines today allow their customers to pay their airfares in bitcoin!

• Norwegian Air
• CheapAir.com
• Destinia.com
• AirBaltic
• Peach Aviation
• Lot Polish Airlines
• Virgin Galactic

Fast-food chains and restaurants that accept bitcoin

The food business is a booming industry throughout the world. Some fast food chains and restaurants across the globe have also entered the cryptocurrency space by accepting bitcoin as payment from their customers.

• Subway
• Lieferando
• Domino’s Pizza
• Burger King
• Eat Me Bangkok

Banks that accept bitcoin

While this may sound somewhat unusual and contradicting to some—notably because much of the opposition on cryptocurrency comes from this industry—there are still few banks around the world that accept bitcoin. Some banks sell bitcoin, while others offer cryptocurrency-related investments and trading opportunities.

• Fidor Bank
• Goldman Sachs
• Royal Bank of Canada
• Worldcore
• Bankera
• Change Bank

Technology companies that accept bitcoin

Major technology companies have also gotten into the game of cryptocurrency. These companies have started accepting bitcoin as payment in some, if not all, of their products and services. The products include games, movies, applications, and more.

• Intuit
• Microsoft
• Paypal

Nonprofit organizations and charities that accept bitcoin

If philanthropy is your thing and you’re interested in helping others achieve projects and campaigns, you can also make donations using bitcoin. These projects can include research, education, science, and more. Here are some of the many nonprofit groups and charities where bitcoin is accepted.

• The Water Project
• Internet Archive
• Red Cross
• Save the Children
• United Way
• Code to Inspire
• BitGive
• Heifer International
• Autism Speaks
• Zamzam Water
• Bitcoinforcharity.com

Theaters that accept bitcoin

Watching your favorite movie or play has never been this easy! Some theaters and cinemas around the world also accept bitcoin as payment for tickets to shows and movies. 

• Major Cineplex
• Lionsgate Films
• AMC Theaters
• Cine Multi
• London Theatre Direct

E-commerce websites that accept bitcoin

With the evolving and ever-advancing technology that we have today, almost everything can now be accessed and purchased online. A good avenue to do this is through electronic commerce, which allows consumers to have an exchange of products and services electronically.

If you are one of the many people that do almost everything online and are also a bitcoin holder, it’s high time you do your thing online with bitcoin. Here are some of the major e-commerce websites that now accept bitcoin as payment.

• Shopify
• Etsy
• Rakuten

The services like Bitplaza enable users to shop easily with bitcoin by giving them an option to order groceries and electronics with bitcoin.

Auction sites that accept bitcoin

Are you a fan of bidding, collecting, and/or buying? There are plenty of auction sites that can facilitate what you need. Here are some of those auction sites that accept bitcoin as payment to choose from.

• Reddit BitMarket
• Bitify
• Tripleclicks
• Ubid
• Bitcoin Trading Forum Auctions

Gaming sites that accept bitcoin

For those who are into playing video and computer games, there are a few major gaming companies now accept bitcoin as payment. While some might not directly hand you their products when exchanged directly with bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, you can try making use of gift cards and trading them for bitcoin. Here are just a few of the many gaming sites that you can try.

• Xbox
• Zynga
• PlayStation Network
• Big Fish Games
• Green Man Gaming

Brokers that accept bitcoin

Bitcoin is known as a digital asset with very unique characteristics. One of these characteristics is its volatility. Since bitcoin is experiencing rapid gains and extreme falls, this leading virtual currency is very interesting for brokers and traders as a reliable trading product. Below are some brokers that accept bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

• FX Choice
• Finpro Trading
• InstaForex
• Turnkey Forex

VPNs that accept bitcoin

VPN, or virtual private network, is known as a network that allows a user to have a secure connection to another network over the Internet. It can also be used to access some restricted websites or even protect your browsing activity from the public wireless fidelity connections and others. If you are into security, you can now buy a VPN using your bitcoin!

• Nord VPN
• ExpressVPN
• CyberGhost
• AirVPN
• Bullet VPN
• Private Internet Access

Music stores that accept bitcoin

There are also some music stores that allow you to stream music and buy albums using bitcoin. Much like some gaming websites, many music stores do not directly accept bitcoin as payment. However, you can try purchasing gift cards with bitcoin to purchase their products. Here are some music stores that you might want to check out.

• EMWiRES Bitcoin Shop
• Dark Ambient Radio
• Long Player
• Tradebit
• Bittunes
• iTunes

Vacation rentals that accept bitcoin

Who would have thought that vacations can be this less stressful with bitcoin? Going away from home or your safe haven is now even easier because you can book a room or even a resort for your well-deserved vacations using bitcoin. Sounds pretty convenient, right? Here are some places for you to check out.

• Caribound
• VisionApartments
• Vacation Rental Las Vegas
• Ocean Reef Resorts
• Stayawhile
• City Stables

Online Companies that accept bitcoin

Aside from the previously listed companies, there are still lots of online companies that have adopted the function of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

Electronic Shops

• Avalancha
• NewEgg
• TigerDirect
• Overstock
• e4btc
• Eyeboot
• FastTech
• Bic Camera

Escrow Companies

• My Bits Escrow Services
• BTCrow
• IBC Group
• Coin Payments

Vape Stores

• Vape Dojo
• 8BitVape
• Mt. Baker Vapor
• Black Forest Vapes
• E-Liquid UK Store
• Fog On The Tyne
• StealthVape
• Vape and Juice

Shopping Stores

• Joli Originals
• Beloved
• Girlmeetsdress.com
• Realwatches.com

Holiday Companies

• Expedia
• Berkeley Travel
• Bitcoin.Travel
• eTravelSmart
• Flyhi.fi
• BTCTrip
• Surf air
• 9flats.com

Softwares that accept bitcoin

• Gyazo
• The House of Nakamoto
• Mediabistro Inc.
• MindMeister Mind

Online Casinos that accept bitcoin

• Cloudbet Casino
• BetChain
• Oshi Casino
• mBit Casino
• Bspin

Poker Sites that accept bitcoin 

• Ignition Poker
• BetOnline
• Bovada Poker
• InterTops
• SwC Poker

While this list offers you hundreds of companies and businesses that accept bitcoin in exchange for their products and services, there are still hundreds or even thousands more that weren’t mentioned.

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies still have a long way to go before they reach the peak of adoption. There are some countries that are still skeptical about bitcoin’s functions and capabilities. However, there are still some that are openly making use of it as an innovative payment option and a new kind of money.

As bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies increase adoption, the possibility of it becoming a part of our everyday lives in the years to come cannot be denied.

How can a Small Business Accept Bitcoin?

Businesses around the world are discovering that it pays to develop and employ a Bitcoin strategy — just ask Overstock and TigerDirect.

Firstly, Bitcoin is easy to use; it provides fast transactions with lower costs than credit cards, as well as other benefits. Simply announcing “Bitcoin accepted here” brings with it news media attention. Bitcoin users will also go out of their way to support a Bitcoin business.

But how can a family restaurant or a small online retailer actually begin processing Bitcoin payments and get a good seat on this bandwagon?

Step 1a: Creating Your Bitcoin Address

First, you will need a Bitcoin wallet. This is the address where customers will send their money, and that process works a lot like email: they input your address (or, more likely, scan your QR code with their smartphones), enter the desired amount and hit “Send.”

Like with a cash register, you will probably need to take the money out at the end of the business day and store it somewhere safe. In general, it is good practice to keep only small amounts of bitcoins on your computer, mobile, or server for everyday use. You may want to store the bulk of your funds in a safer environment.

On the Internet, you can easily find tutorials on how exactly to set up the Bitcoin wallet. Don’t forget to use some best practices for securing that wallet, too.

Step 1b: Using a Payment Processor

If your sales process is a little too complicated for direct Bitcoin payments into a wallet, or if you handle many transactions during your business hours, then consider using a payment processor. BitPay and Coinbase are two of the best-known examples.

Payment processors will charge either a percentage or a monthly fee for their services, but their prices are still far cheaper than what credit card companies or PayPal charge.

Furthermore, payment processors will offer a few applications of their technology: you can send email invoices, set up a POS (useful if you are running a restaurant or cafe, for example) or add a shopping cart plugin to your online shop.

Finally, if you don’t want to hold onto your Bitcoin (say your suppliers and landlord want cash in fiat), these kinds of processors can convert your money into fiat instantly.

Step 2: Advertise Bitcoin Acceptance

It helps a lot to indicate to your customers that you do, in fact, accept Bitcoin. If you have an online storefront, grab this “Bitcoin Accepted Here” button and paste it conspicuously on your site, ideally beside wherever your PayPal, MasterCard, Visa and whatever buttons you already have are.

If you have a brick-and-mortar establishment, grab similar stickers for your door or cash register here.

Step 3: Bookkeeping and Taxes

Reach out to your accountant to determine how to keep records of Bitcoin or Litecoin or Darkcoin or whatever altcoin transactions. Some accountancy firms are beginning to emerge that specialize in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Bitcountant is one such example.

Tax Ninja in San Francisco is another firm that can handle Bitcoin-related tax issues. For American Bitcoin businesses, meeting tax obligations under the IRS’s guidelines is fairly straightforward, Tax Ninja founder Matthew Whatley told Businessweek in March.

What can be Bought with Bitcoin?

With the growing popularity, bitcoin has gained acceptance in a lot more sectors and the general outlook of cryptocurrencies has been very positive. In May 2018, a programmer was able to purchase a pizza worth something around $30 with 10,000 BTC.

Historically, that’s the first-ever product purchased with Bitcoin Back then, it may seem like a not so fair bargain, accepting Bitcoin to buy something tangible, and standing now, it still seems like an unreasonable bargain, given that cryptocurrency is worth so much more.

Travel and Tourism

Tel and tourism. Thousands of people travel day in and out every day. Some companies went a step ahead to make it easier for their users to transact and pay for their travel bookings using bitcoins.

Expedia, one of the largest travel booking agencies can now accept bitcoin payments as a form of payment for online hotel bookings you may make through their website. Their payment channel is powered by Coinbase and accepts currently bitcoins at the moment.

Furthermore, companies like CheapAir, accept airline bookings through bitcoins as well. They started out as the early adopters of Crypto and putting it to use for realistic purchases for its users.

Speaking of some bigger guns, although all the seats are currently booked, Virgin Galactic, the brainchild of Richard Branson, guaranteeing a trip to the space accepted, and will in future as well, payments for seats in its space voyage in bitcoins. That’s the futuristic combo we thrive for.

Food and Drinks

Craving for pizza but got no change? Pizzaforcoins is a California-based service that allows you to purchase pizzas from major pizza chains such as Papa John’s, Pizza Hut and more, using yours truly, bitcoin. How the platform works is that it lets you enter your location, and shows available pizza places in your neighbourhood.

Once you select and place the order, it is relayed to the respective restaurant once you make the payment which also appears in BTC. You can make payments using up to 50 cryptocurrencies at the moment, given its integration with Shapeshift. You can either have the pizza delivered to you or pick it up from the location.

If you aren’t based off in the US, then you can give Lieferando.de a go, a German food delivery service with over 11,000 restaurants under its belt. It recently added payments via bitcoins. It uses Bitpay to process its transactions, hence allowing you to pay for your food in either Bitcoin or Bitcoin cash.

Another Russian food delivery service, with over 90 restaurants in its partners, added a cryptocurrency payment option to its checkout options. Before the option was added though, none of the restaurants individually supported cryptos. So, that’s a big step in the right direction for food lovers and crypto enthusiasts alike.

Gaming and Entertainment

Among the big players in the industry, Microsoft’s Xbox store and Windows Store allows you to purchase games, movies and more using bitcoins as a mode of payment. You can load the bitcoin into your Microsoft account and get ahead to use it as a payment method whenever you are checking out.

However, a small caveat is that you cannot refund the bitcoins you deposit so just be mindful of the amount you load into your Microsoft account.

For smaller niche players, you can also buy games and redeemable gift cards from various platforms such as BitPlaza, Coinmall and Zynga. These platforms allow you to pay for your game purchases using Bitcoin as money.

Shopping and More

A lot of stores have added cryptocurrency payment options to their website with the growing popularity of digital currencies in general and bitcoins in particular. Etsy, a globally renowned e-commerce platform allows sellers to set bitcoin as a method of receiving payments from their purchasers.

Furthermore, Blockonomics worked with WordPress to help it set up Bitcoin payments integrations on its website so people who have websites built using WordPress can accept Bitcoin payments from their buyers using bitcoin simply by adding the respective plugin to their website.

Bitrefill, a platform that allows you to purchase vouchers from top food chains in the US such as Cheesecake Factory, Chipotle, Dunkin Donuts, Burger King and more, using bitcoins. Your favourite food chains with your favourite mode of payments.

You can also purchase gift cards for gaming platforms such as Steam, Xbox and Nintendo. Similarly, platforms like Gyft and BitPlaza allow you to purchase just about anything from personal accessories to groceries and gift cards and pay with bitcoins on your checkout.

Reed Jewelers, a renowned name in the American jewelry and accessories industry, has stores in over 13 states along with an online presence. In both physical and online stores, Reeds accepts bitcoin as a form of payment. You can purchase watches, jewelry, diamonds and more.

Another major player in the shopping industry is Overstock, which accepts bitcoins as a form of payment. Not only that, the publicly listed company’s CEO has shared interest and enthusiasm to acquire and work with blockchain-based companies.

The company Overstock also conducted an ICO in 2018 to restructure its business and manage to raise over 250 million dollars, one of the highest funds raised through ICO.

Miscellaneous Purchases

Dish, a satellite TV and internet service provider started offering bitcoin payment options as early as 2014. You can purchase a one-time subscription through their website. Earlier they used Coinbase’s integration to accept bitcoin payments and have now shifted to Bitpay as their transaction processing handler.

A company called bitcoin Real Estate allows you to sell and purchase properties using bitcoins. You can go ahead and list your house on the worldwide platform and make purchases using the digital currency. The prices are listed US dollars or Euros or equivalence terms for bitcoins.

If you would like to do some good, and help people, you can achieve that with Bitcoin as well. Binance Charity Foundation, among various others, accepts donations in bitcoin as well. They also leverage the power of blockchain to offer transparency for donors to see where their charity goes.

Companies like APMEX and JM Bullion allow its users to purchase gold, silver and similar precious metals through its website and pay for them by accepting bitcoin. However, the purchases are capped at around a quarter of a million dollars.

Bloomberg and Chicago Sun-times are among the online news platforms that offer bitcoin as a payment option to their subscription model. Similarly, Treehouse, an educational platform accepts bitcoin payment for its courses.

Read Also: A Comprehensive Guide to Trading Bitcoin

Among some notable innovations for using bitcoins to make payments is the contactless card offered by BitPay, a payment processing company for cryptos. The card is offered as a Visa card which allows conversion of bitcoins and bitcoin cash into US dollars or whichever is the local fiat in your country.

However, currently only available to US residents, it allows you to use it just as a normal credit card making purchases all the more seamless just like with the conventional fiat-backed credit cards.

There are many other websites that currently allow for bitcoin too, including but not limited to:

• OKCupid (dating site)
• CheapAir (travel/hotel booking agency)
• PizzaForCoins (pizza delivery)
• Zynga (Mobile apps/games)
• Etsy (e-commerce, some Etsy sellers accept bitcoin as payment)

Conclusion

If you decide to add bitcoin as a payment method, you need a developer to help you add it to your shopping cart. Work with one of the popular bitcoin processors to avoid issues with poorly secured systems. Once you have bitcoin included in your shopping cart, you can take payments and automatically convert them to local currency to avoid inflation issues.