With any new technology, it’s difficult if not impossible to know when usage will flip from a niche market of early adopters to a mass audience of regular users. This is especially true of , which, after an explosive bubble of hype in 2017 has settled into a now multi-year bear market, with strong opinions and predictions on all sides of the discussion ( is dead! Long live !).
But what real-world signs can we see that global acceptance of the technology is actually moving forward? Here are just a few of the recent developments in .
1. Several US States are moving towards accepting bitcoin for tax payments
Some the ultimate sign of and legitimacy is when governments begin accepting for tax payments. Most governments are at best warily skeptical and at worst openly hostile towards . Why would a government accept unless they saw it as sound money?
Well, several states in the U.S. may be moving in that direction. In fact, the state of Ohio its residents to pay their taxes in . While Ohio may be the first, it doesn’t appear to be the only U.S. state opening the doors to tax payments. , , , and all have legislation under consideration for legitimizing tax payments in some form.
While the U.S. federal government probably won’t recognize the legitimacy of or other for tax payments any time soon, the fact that individual states are moving in that direction is a huge step forward for .
The of growing acceptance by U.S. states mirrors similar developments internationally. The city of , for example, began accepting for municipal fees in 2016, and recently a began making the case for accepting for tax payments in that country.
2. Argentina begins accepting bitcoin for public transit fees
Accepting for taxes may be a huge step forward, but tax payments only happen, at most, a few times per year. What about more daily use cases?
Well, Argentina the first place to accept for public transit tickets. Argentine commuters can now top up their transit cards using , and considering the country’s recent inflation worries, it may indeed be an option that many people start taking advantage of.
3. Germany’s largest food delivery app now accepts bitcoin payments
In another significant step forward for daily , Germany’s most popular home delivery app, Lieferando, began accepting as a payment method. The app boasts millions of users and 13,000 restaurants to choose from, and its parent company, Takeaway.com, also allows payments in their other European markets: Belgium, Poland, Bulgaria, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Portugal, Austria, and Romania.
4. You can now use the lightning network to buy Dominos pizza with bitcoin
hodlers in the U.S. also have a way to satisfy their munchies now with , which to pay for Dominos pizza with anywhere in the States using the Lightning Network. The service, designed to spread awareness and , gives users a 5% discount on their pizza orders, while settling transactions within 30 seconds and delivering pizzas in 30 minutes.
5. Australian property owners are accepting bitcoin for real estate sales
If taxes and pizza aren’t enough to persuade you that is moving forward, how about the use of for the largest purchase most people will ever make in their lifetimes, if ever?
Despite the extended bear market and volatility concerns, homeowners are still offering their properties for in . The trend has been observed particularly in , where properties as high as AU$799,000 have recently been on offer. Recently, a prominent company in , one of the biggest growing markets for , also announced their support of for property sales.
6. National governments are using bitcoin to pay for trade deals
Governments accepting for taxes is huge, but governments paying their own bills in is even bigger.
Last month, a conducted between Argentina and Paraguay was paid for with . While the deal, reportedly for fumigation products, wasn’t worth an incredibly large sum at $7k, the fact that both governments recognize the value of in terms of transaction speed, security, and low fees, enough to complete a trade deal using the , is a huge signal of its growing legitimization on the global stage.
7. Philippines Central Bank helps launch a two-way bitcoin ATM
Another governmental authority, in another recent , has recognized the value of by facilitating the installation of a ATM in Manila.
The Philippines Central Bank, Bankgo Sentral, recently partnered with Philippine retail bank UnionBank to launch an ATM allowing users to both buy and sell , recognizing the ’s “potential to revolutionize.”
77% of the Philippine population is reportedly unbanked, and the metropolitan area of Manila, known as Mega Manila, has recently become one of the fastest growing markets for .
8. Wyoming becomes the first US state to enact comprehensive blockchain-friendly legislation
In another important governmental first, the state of Wyoming recently the first U.S. state to enact a series of comprehensive pro- laws.
The legislation, comprising a total of 13 laws, does things like: recognize digital asset property rights, authorizes state support for banking services, and bring digital assets under the existing commercial legal framework, which is arguably the most business-friendly in the U.S..
9. Latin American countries are adopting cryptocurrency at record rates
Plagued by economic and monetary problems, many residents and even governments of countries are turning to as an economic lifeline.
With its current political and economic crisis, Venezuela is often spoken of as an ideal use case for , and indeed, demand for reached in the country in February, 2019. But Venezuela is far from the only growing market in Latin America. Public confidence in governmental economic management is notoriously low in , and is seen as another important market for due to similar economic problems.
10. Japan’s largest online retailer is pro-cryptocurrency
Rukuten, often described as the Amazon.com of , their corporate structure to include a exchange, and appear to have indicated that the upcoming update of their e-commerce app will support native payments.
The retail giant recorded $1.3 billion in earnings for 2018 (a 28.4% increase from 2017), and boats 1 billion users around the globe in 29 countries.
Published at Wed, 06 Mar 2019 14:14:17 +0000
