Bitcoin Crashing Has Introduced Alternative Ways Of Using It
With Bitcoin reaching its all-time high of 68,000 USD last November 2021, it’s a little surprising to see it hovering just above the 21,000 USD mark at the time of writing (June 2022). The crash is causing panic among many investors, but for others, it doesn’t change a single thing.
Bitcoin being solely a tool for investment has been an outdated notion for a while now, with developing countries showing us that it can be used for so much more. With the crash that’s currently going on in the entire cryptocurrency market, maybe it’s time to take a look at the alternative ways of using Bitcoin and show the world that it’s more than just a digital asset people use for investment.
Bitcoin remittances
The problems with the current models of remittance have traditionally boiled down to two main factors: price and speed.
With all the intermediaries involved, the fees can stack up. Traditional services will charge for withdrawals, deposits, transfers, and conversion rates. The fees will often depend on how much you’re sending and how urgent your money needs to be transferred.
It can sometimes take a while for the funds to get to their destination. For speedier transactions, many services will allow you to pay a little extra for same-day transfers. Even with bank transfers, you’ll have to provide a lot of personal information (account numbers, SWIFT codes, and more)—which can take just as long as a regular money transfer and can be even more expensive.
With Bitcoin transfers, everything can be a lot cheaper and much quicker—especially with features like the Lightning Network now being implemented into some of the most popular Bitcoin platforms.
Additionally, global peer-to-peer marketplaces like Paxful will have multiple payment options (Paxful has over 450 to choose from), allowing you to use almost anything to send Bitcoin. You could try converting PayPal to Bitcoin, sending BTC quickly at lower costs with the Lightning Network, and the recipient would get the funds within minutes.
Using Bitcoin for real-world transactions
As Bitcoin continues to soar in popularity, more and more business owners are beginning to accept it as a payment for their goods and services. This means that you use your Bitcoin to buy your favorite cup of coffee, a plane ticket to your ideal destination, hotel accommodations for a weekend getaway, and many more.
Even if the business owner doesn’t accept Bitcoin directly, there are always workarounds. For example, let’s say that your favorite coffee shop doesn’t take BTC but will accept payment using a popular e-wallet. With platforms like Paxful, you can convert your Bitcoin into e-wallet funds with just a few taps on your smartphone, send it their way, grab your cup of coffee, and be on your way.
Earning extra income
Aside from the popular Bitcoin trading strategies like HODLing and day trading, there are many other ways to earn extra income with Bitcoin. One popular option is to start an online business using gift cards.
Many people use peer-to-peer marketplaces like Paxful to kickstart their own businesses—buying, selling, and trading gift cards and Bitcoin to earn a little extra money.
With the peer-to-peer aspect heavily prevalent on these types of platforms, people can buy Bitcoin easily and sell it at a higher price almost instantaneously for a little extra income. Because of the many opportunities like these available, users from all over the world have built their businesses from the ground up and made trading their primary means of income.
Many more are on the way
Cheaper remittances, more efficient transactions, and an alternative means of income are just a few real-use cases that Bitcoin is introducing to the world. Other ways of using it include wealth preservation, e-commerce, and more—and as long as people out there keep staying creative with how they use Bitcoin, the list of real-use cases will only continue to grow.
People using Bitcoin for these purposes have, essentially, made BTC’s price crash a secondary or even tertiary issue. No matter how much the price drops, people are still going to use it for the way it was intended to be used and the price won’t change that.
Bitcoin, according to Satoshi Nakamoto’s whitepaper, was meant to be an electronic peer-to-peer cash system. If you’re one of the many people out there using it for that reason, the dip in price shouldn’t concern you at all.
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