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The Rise Of Bitcoin: What It Means For Business

Posted on by bgordon

The Rise Of Bitcoin: What It Means For Business

With the adoption of blockchain technology increasing by the day, the time is ripe for small businesses to adapt to changing situations by learning about Bitcoin and Blockchain technology. However, distrust towards the exchange organizations are among the worrying threats that keep many away from bitcoin adoption.

COVID-19 and the subsequent rise in the virtual working environment and increased force of virtual workers have caused a phenomenon that experts call the “cyber pandemic.” This new digital pandemic is associated with a massive surge in the frequency of cyberattacks like phishing, ransomware attacks, etc. FBI reports indicate that the increase in the last year alone is more than the previous three years combined. With all this recent talk about ransomware and cybercrime and the association of ransoms to Bitcoin, Bitcoin might appear as a scary concept to business owners. After all, ransomware attacks can affect even the SMB (small-to-medium sized business) or SME (small-to-medium-sized enterprise). It is important to manage risks with proper precautions. But the potential benefits of bitcoin include cheaper transaction fees and exposure to a dedicated niche customer base who wants crypto as a payment method to be available to purchase goods and services. Read more to understand how and why SMEs and SMBs can accept cryptocurrencies while also mitigating associated risks.


(Image Source – Pixabay.com)

How Should A Small Business Deal With Bitcoin Or Cryptocurrencies?

Several small organizations might be wondering how Bitcoin affects them in the future and what they can do to benefit from the crypto booming industry. To understand the implications of dealing with Bitcoin, we need to answer a few questions. These include How to Accept Bitcoin, Why to accept Bitcoin, and associated risks.

Below are some relevant things businesses should consider when dealing with Bitcoin.

  • Getting started: Although organizations can create personal wallets for storing and accepting Bitcoin, they can also partner with a payments facilitator to do the same. BitPay, Coinbase Commerce, and PayPal are all ways organizations can start receiving cryptocurrency.
  • Tax Implications: U.S. taxpayers need to report Bitcoin transactions for tax purposes. Retail transactions also incur capital gains taxes. Small business owners should consult their tax advisors to determine their taxes.
  • Converting To Fiat: Small enterprise owners also have expenses like salaries, rent, supplier bills, etc., requiring them to use traditional fiat currency. You can easily convert Bitcoin or Ethereum to fiat for low costs at exchanges.
  • Volatility:
    Bitcoin prices can fluctuate wildly. There are some things small enterprises can do to manage risks, however, such as converting the received Bitcoin to stable coins.
  • Marketing:
    Organizations should consistently
    market the fact that they accept cryptocurrencies online. Viral posts can gain a lot of traction within moments and earn them massive revenue.

Benefits Of Accepting Cryptocurrency Such As Bitcoin

Let us look at the benefits of accepting crypto. Small organizations can benefit in the following ways:

  • Lower Transaction Fees: Conventional merchant payment solutions often have significant fees of over 3%. Such exorbitant costs can harm the margins of small enterprises. Bitcoin transactions over the lightning network, however, cost just a fraction of a cent.
  • No Chargeback or Payment Disputes: Chargebacks and payment disputes are a significant concern to small enterprises. Although individual customers can raise payment disputes, Bitcoin transfers are final, and chargebacks are not an issue.
  • Additional Profit Opportunities: Organizations can also earn from cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin by lending out crypto at attractive rates or staking their currency. Savings from fees can also be passed on to customers as discounts, thus earning more market share.
  • Increased Sales: Tapping into the cryptocurrency consumer base can provide new revenue streams to a small organization. The crypto consumer base is always flush with money and supports small organizations that accept crypto out of principle.
  • Simplified Acceptance: Organizations only need a Bitcoin-friendly checkout process and wallet to begin accepting crypto.

Key Statistics About Bitcoin And Small Business

Several big businesses have been accepting Bitcoin in the past. In the last few years, more small enterprises have joined after seeing the benefits of accepting cryptocurrencies.


Number of organizations that have a cryptocurrency ATM or have cryptocurrencies as an option for in-store payment as of March 9, 2021, by industry

(Graph Source – Statista)

The graph given above shows how more small businesses are accepting Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies early in 2021. The signs are encouraging because of the following reasons.

  • More Awareness: Bitcoin acceptance is improving primarily because of increased awareness. Such a situation benefits merchants who are earlier to accepting cryptos.
  • Regulatory Protection: Small enterprises will gain from the enhanced regulatory protection as adoption increases.
  • Easier Loans: It is effortless to take out a loan in stablecoin after keeping a deposit of cryptocurrency as collateral. Organizations can thus take out easy loans as and when needed while also benefitting from capital appreciation during bull runs.
  • Spending Ecosystem: Rising awareness of blockchain will lead to an environment where organizations can freely spend their earned cryptocurrencies to pay off operational costs.
  • Reduced Legal Expenses: The introduction of smart contracts can reduce the legal expenses that small businesses incur.

Bitcoin Day Omaha: An Excellent Opportunity To Network And Learn From Industry Experts

Bitcoin Day Omaha is an annual event for celebrating Bitcoin, promoting its usage and encouraging acceptance. No matter your knowledge level, you will benefit by making excellent connections with industry professionals and understanding the evolving technology better. 

Learning from experts will help you make better decisions regarding the currency you gain from your sales. The program comes with a Q&A session, informative hands-on seminars and several networking opportunities over breakfast and lunch. 

More Information about Bitcoin Day Omaha:

Here is what you will learn over the day:

  • Bitcoin As An Exponential Asset: Bitcoin
    is an asset that has seen over 14000% in the last five years. This section teaches about how it is an exponential asset that can benefit your organization.
  • The Regulatory Landscape: Cryptocurrency is still in a regulatory gray zone. Bitcoin Omaha Day will help you learn about ever-evolving laws and compliance norms.
  • Bitcoin 101: Bitcoin is the first and the most accepted cryptocurrency. This part of the seminar will help you understand its fundamentals, tokenomics and why it is revolutionary in today’s digital world.
  • Blockchain 101: Bitcoin is just the tip of the iceberg in the crypto world. You will get to learn several other blockchain applications, such as Decentralized finance (DeFi), smart contracts, and the latest trends in crypto, such as NFTs.
  • Buying and Securing Coins: In-depth explanations of the different options for buying cryptos will be discussed. You also need to learn the best practices for keeping your currencies secure.
  • Banking, Trading and Taxes: Possibly the most critical part of the seminar. This section discusses how to deal with banking integration for accepting crypto, trading currencies online, and the taxes involved with dealing in Bitcoin.
  • HODL Mentality: HODL is a term that means long term investment. The misspelling comes from a hilarious story of a drunken man buying Bitcoin and “HODLING” it, i.e., not selling during a market crash. That person is now presumably a multi-millionaire.
  • Financial Services: The final section of the seminar discusses the various financial services that an investor and merchant dealing in Bitcoin can use. Wealth management is also addressed so that people can grow their wealth and not lose it.

Bitcoin Day Omaha is being organized by our friends at Alpha BTC, a leading European cryptocurrency exchange platform. By joining, you can educate yourself on the digital currency revolution and gain all the benefits while mitigating risks.

Final Words

Cryptocurrency can seem challenging to wrap your head around (just ask us about our futile attempt at Bitcoin mining!). With more SMEs and SMBs starting to accept cryptocurrencies, make sure you are not left behind. Bitcoin Day Omaha will provide you with all the information you need to feel more confident in your preparedness for the new digital revolution and integrate digital currencies with your business operations.

References

  1. Khalid, A. (2021, March 08). What You Need To Know Before Accepting Bitcoin Payments. INC.

    https://www.inc.com/amrita-khalid/cryptocurrency-bitcoin-payments.html

  2. Startup Info Team. (2020, November 24). Why and How Should Small Businesses Accept Bitcoin. Startup Info.

    https://startup.info/how-and-why-small-businesses-can-accept-bitcoin/

  3. Moran, A. (2020, September 23). 9 Ways That Bitcoin Is Affecting Small Businesses Today. Starting Business.

    https://www.startingbusiness.com/blog/business-bitcoin

  4. Bitcoin Day.

    https://www.bitcoindayomaha.com/

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