2018-10-22 20:43 |
Are Wages Paid in Bitcoin the Key to Mass Retailer Adoption?
Francis Pouliot, CEO of Canadian Bitcoin startup Bylis, discussed whether retailers would be more keep to adopt Bitcoin payments if people were paid in bitcoin. He tweeted:
People that earn income in Bitcoin tend to spend bitcoins on goods, services, debts, bills and top-ups.
People who buy Bitcoin with fiat tend to hodl, or sell for fiat.
Observations from @myBylls "real" users.
Merchant adoption won't take off until people get paid in Bitcoin.
— Francis Pouliot (@francispouliot_) October 20, 2018
The big question that arises is whether Bitcoin is seen as a form of money. The recent volatility may have prevented retailer acceptance. One of the most noteworthy retailers to cease accepting bitcoin as a form of payment was Steam.
Steam pointed to price volatility and transaction fees, which reached $20 per transaction at one point. This may have also fueled the shift in perception of bitcoin from a form of money to an asset, such as shares or gold.
Jay Clayton, the chair of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) clarified that he believes bitcoin is not a security, because it can act as a replacement for fiat. Many see bitcoin as an investment vehicle or a store of value and as a result, they invest in it as they would stocks or shares. Pouliot noted that they also tend to HODL, which means they sell, but do not spent the funds on daily expenses.
Interestingly enough, bitcoin’s early proponents such as miners and developers, see bitcoin as money. The boom in bitcoin’s price in 2017 also turned these individuals into investors. There is also some indication that those who have balances of bitcoin instead of fiat are more likely to use it as a form of payment for goods and services.
It may also be reasonable to surmise that wages paid in bitcoin or more retail adoption may increase perception of bitcoin as money. Such as perception may also lead to increased use. Of course, that is not to say that bitcoin does not have issues of price volatility and the amount of transactions that it can handle. These problems derail retailers.
Some believe that payment salaried full-time employees in bitcoin may create extra work for tax payments because they still must be reported, calculated, and paid. Poulit recently tweeted:
Absolutely. Interest payments directly in Bitcoin. Royalties. Dividends. Profit-sharing. Referrals. Reward and program payouts. Court settlements. Paid back from friend for a loan. People need to *earn* Bitcoin, by their capital, labour, time, skills, value creation
— Francis Pouliot (@francispouliot_) October 20, 2018
Bitcoin is also moving forward as a currently. In Japan, retailers are likely to accept bitcoin. And retailers such as Uber, Expedia, Overstock, and Microsoft accept bitcoin as a form of payment. These small steps may lead to big results when it comes to bitcoin’s mass adoption. More people simply need to understand that it can be a form of legitimate payment.
origin »Bitcoin (BTC) на Currencies.ru
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