Bitcoin: What can you buy with cryptocurrencies?

The number of companies and platforms that accept it as a payment method has increased in recent years

Currently you can buy a variety of products and services with cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin. However, people have focused so much on the blockchain technology behind them, and on the investment in which it has become, that they forget that it is also a currency with value and that with it you can acquire things.

Leer en español: Bitcoin: ¿Qué se puede comprar con criptomonedas?

Around the world, there are thousands of businesses and companies that accept this type of digital currency as a form of payment. Most of them are online platforms, although the amount of local businesses that accept Bitcoin (BTC) is also surprising. Several companies have been involved in this blockchain technology and in cryptocurrencies, but it has been a long process due to the still existing skepticism against this method.

This doubt is due to the great volatility of the BTC, which in a few minutes can change drastically in value. In addition, the transaction time of this currency is so long that at the end it could be losing value for the buyer or seller. This has caused establishments not to apply this option, or have it removed after failed attempts.

However, the variety of things that can be acquired are almost innumerable, since not only there are common businesses that accept BTC as a form of payment, but there are pages of specialized products that only accept cryptocurrencies.

Buy pizza with cryptocurrencies

For example, according to The Street, there is a page that was completely created to order pizza at home with Bitcoin, it is called ' PizzaForCoins'. In addition, the market has also developed to the point where you can give away gift cards with BTC also on sites such as Gyft and eGifter, and these include retailers like Dunkin Donuts, Best Buy, Target, and Home Depot.

Also read: What is the difference between a token and a cryptocurrency? Find out here

Due to the skepticism mentioned above, several companies have stopped accepting cryptocurrencies due to uncertainty. That is why several pages recommend conducting a proper investigation beforehand.

Some businesses lose faith in Bitcoin, others duplicate efforts

The Steam video game platform, for example, stopped allowing BTC as a payment method in December last year due to its volatility, although they said they would try to return to it. Dell also stopped accepting it in November 2017.

At this moment, Overstock.com is a platform that offers various things to buy through bitcoin as furniture, decoration of houses, among others. The electronic retailer Newegg also allows this payment. Here computers, televisions, game consoles, and more are sold.

The Street clarifies that even Microsoft, which has been dubious, has been incorporating little by little this method of payment in Microsoft accounts, specifically in Windows Store and Xbox Store.

Expedia, the platform that helps book hotels, flights, cruises and others, has also incorporated this method a few. At the moment, it only works for hotel reservations. The page has been allied with large BTC exchange pages like Coinbase, with a transaction fee.

Coin Desk clarifies that some musicians like Bjork and Imogen Heep allow downloading their music in exchange for cryptocurrencies.

Latin America also takes off purchases with Bitcoin

According to Diario Bitcoin, several users of Mercadolibre, the largest online shopping and selling platform in Latin America, are beginning to accept Bitcoin as their payment method. In the descriptions of their sales, they put phrases like 'I accept Bitcoin' or 'I accept cryptos'.

In fact, in countries such as Argentina and Chile, there have been publications in which the registrants sell cryptocurrencies, as well as an exchange platform for them. However, the platform as such has not implemented this method as an official payment.

An article by Cripto Noticias recognized Buenos Aires as the bitcoin capital of Latin America at the end of last year. There, we found 145 businesses, organizations, and professionals that accept bitcoins.

There is Ediciones LEE, one of the few publishers that breaks with schemes and accepts bitcoins as a method of payment about two years ago. A law firm, Bildenlex Abogados is another business that accepts BTC as a method of payment.

LatinAmerican Post | Valentina Moya
Translated from “Bitcoin: ¿Qué se puede comprar con criptomonedas?”

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