BITCOIN MERCHANTS SEE PAYMENTS DECLINE IN 2018, DESPITE RECORD LOW FEES

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Crypto merchant-processing services are receiving less bitcoin than before. Volatility, transaction fees, and an inability to reverse transactions have been cited as the reasons why.

Leading crypto merchant-processing services are receiving less bitcoin. In September 2017, companies including BitPay, Coinify, and GoCoin received $411 million. After a low of $60 million in May 2018, the figure now sits at $69 million

The numbers suggest that people are choosing not to spend bitcoin for goods or services. This decline coincided with the spike in speculative investing. Consumers appear reluctant to transact with BTC despite the price of Bitcoin $7035.89 -0.06% steadying somewhat in the time since.

IS BITCOIN IN TROUBLE?

The way Bitcoin is being used is changing. Researchers are casting speculation on Bitcoin’s usefulness due to three factors. Volatility, transaction fees, and the inability to reverse transactions.

Several companies have backed away from Bitcoin since usage declined and price swings intensified. In January, Payment service Stripe Inc. stopped supporting Bitcoin. Also, various travel providers, including Expedia, have stopped accepting the cryptocurrency.

SCOPE FOR HOPE

On the other hand, a bevy of other cryptocurrencies still maintain a less positive outlook than Bitcoin in terms of transaction fees.

“a large uptick in crypto companies paying their vendors in Bitcoin.” This includes, “law firms, hosting companies, accounting firms, landlords and software vendors.”

Another viable use case is for bigger-ticket items. Overstock.com Inc. reported a two-fold increase in crypto-base sales in the first half of 2018. According to the website, furniture and laptops are the top items bought with crypto.

https://bitcoinist.com/bitcoins-use-in-commerce-is-in-decline/

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