Benefits of Accepting Cryptocurrency Payments
Benefits of Accepting Cryptocurrency Payments
The emergence of blockchain technology has spawned countless cryptocurrencies, and each of them has its own community, structure, specific use case, utility, and much more.
But all cryptocurrencies have one thing in common: they are changing the way society engages in daily financial activities and how the perception of money, property and value is gradually shifting towards a higher valuation of currencies based on blockchain.
Of course, these changes may seem rapid now, when the DeFi sphere alone seems to be halfway to becoming a trillion-dollar sector. Nevertheless, fundamental changes began back in 2008, when a document on bitcoin took the cryptographers’ mailing list by storm.
Since that day, there has been no way to come back from the exponentially growing hype around Bitcoin’s potential.
Soon, public interest in blockchain technology became even more intense, which led to an impressive growth of thousands of different cryptocurrencies, DeFi, NFT, dApps and DEX, as well as all the crazy things that appeared with them.
Crypto as a new kind of medium of exchange
Today, it is safe to say that not only bitcoin, but also cryptocurrency as a whole has achieved the status of a new, intriguing and exciting medium of exchange for both casual cryptocurrency users and businesses seeking to expand their reach of open and unlimited financial markets.
It seems obvious that today spending cryptocurrencies on goods or services no longer seems to be something unusual. There are enterprises from literally every industry imaginable that have switched to trading, transactions or accepting payments without intermediaries in decentralized networks – which was impossible before the invention of bitcoin – whether because it suits their business model well, or because cryptocurrency payment methods simply complement traditional ones well, or else something.
However, there are many more reasons to consider if you are starting to think that accepting cryptocurrencies for payments might be a good idea. Maybe even good for everyone! And you may be right, as evidenced by the following study.
Is accepting cryptocurrencies worth the effort?
Despite the fact that thousands of businesses are already accepting crypto payments as a viable form of payment, recent research conducted by the crypto exchange Crypto.com, show that there is still a huge discrepancy between consumer demand and the acceptance of crypto payments by merchants.
According to the latest study, which involved a modest 110,000 customers and more than 1.5 million World pay sellers, only 4% of the surveyed sellers accept crypto payments, although 60% are interested in such an opportunity.
Meanwhile, 40% of the surveyed customers already use digital assets to purchase goods and services, while 75% are interested in having such an opportunity.
As a result of this ~10-fold disparity between crypto-friendly customers and merchants doing business in cryptocurrency, 64% of customers Crypto.com They use prepaid cards to spend their funds in places that do not directly accept digital coins for payment.
This strongly suggests that there is a strong hunger for wider adoption of cryptocurrency payment methods.
These statistics point to huge opportunities for every merchant around the world, especially in the tourism, automotive, digital media and hotel industries, where demand and imbalances are highest, according to the study.
Although this is already a good enough reason, the high demand for cryptocurrency payment methods from consumers is far from the only incentive for every business to decisively consider allowing its customers to pay with cryptocurrency.
What are the business benefits of cryptocurrency?
Many people find cryptocurrencies very attractive for payment for various reasons – it’s faster, cheaper, easier, more private, and sometimes all at the same time.
Similarly, sellers who have installed cryptocurrency payment options also receive additional benefits, mainly in that they avoid the numerous problems and obstacles that arise when using traditional means of payment, such as credit cards or bank transfers, and use new opportunities that would otherwise be unavailable.
By introducing cryptocurrency payment rails into business operations, merchants always find themselves in a win-win situation, and that’s why:
Get paid instantly and from anywhere
When clients use crypto assets, their location does not affect the speed or cost of transactions in any way. In fact, in most cases, payments are processed in a matter of seconds, since most blockchains tend to settle cryptocurrency transactions immediately.
When using crypto payment processing services such as wellcoinex, even payments in Bitcoin and Ethereum, which usually require more processing time, can be detected and securely approved as paid even before they are fully confirmed on the blockchain, which significantly reduces the long waiting time.
All these crypto transactions are openly displayed in the public ledger and can be tracked in real time.
You do not need bank accounts or credit/debit cards to make transactions with cryptocurrency. Merchants can take advantage of this, regardless of whether they only offer digital products online, sell goods or services in a store, ship goods to another continent, or even raise funds from business partners.
Cryptocurrencies have no borders, as do the businesses that use them. Be that as it may, cryptocurrencies can always come in handy.
Avoid costly and inconvenient currency conversions
Let’s assume that your business tends to make international deals. In this case, cross-border payments through several banks on several accounts can be very difficult when converting currency, creating additional obstacles such as delays and additional costs.
On the contrary, payment or collection of payments in digital currency does not involve any currency settlements. And if this happens, it is not a burden compared to the headache associated with the exchange rates and procedures of fiat currencies.
This may not be the most relevant advantage for most businesses, but in some cases it can make you appreciate the simplicity of cryptocurrencies even more.
Enjoy lower transaction fees
Traditional payment service providers, such as credit card processors, easily charge merchants a standard commission of 2.9% or higher plus 30 or so cents for each incoming transaction. However, when using crypto payments, these commissions simply cease to exist.
The only circumstance in which a merchant may face some expenses is the use of a third-party payment processor that processes the payment flow and provides tools for accounting and other business operations.
However, the commission charged by crypto payment providers is several times less than that of traditional means of payment, and at best does not exceed 1% of the total transaction volume.
No more fraudulent chargebacks
Most e-commerce veterans have at some point encountered customers who called their bank and demanded a refund for their products or services.
The reasons why customers initiate refunds may be different – some people forget what services they have subscribed to and are afraid that someone is charging money from their credit card for accidental purchases, while others intend to take advantage of consumer protection laws and get a refund through the bank for a product already used or a service.
However, as it turned out, buyers can rarely distinguish a refund from a refund, which leads to the fact that up to 80% of all refunds are filled out illegally.
Instead of contacting the seller for a refund, some tend to call the bank and ask for a refund in a way that turns the situation into a so-called friendly, or involuntary, fraud.
The fight against fraudulent chargebacks is always an undesirable burden, but absolutely necessary, since every uncontested chargeback can punish the seller with a large fine from the bank and the loss of all profits from the sale.
In addition, if a merchant receives a large number of chargebacks compared to the total number of his orders, the credit card processor may consider discontinuing payment processing services for this customer.
Unfortunately, challenging chargebacks rarely benefits the seller. Research shows that card issuers usually tend to give preference to consumers rather than sellers.
To be more precise, it is five times more often, which traders do not really like, given how time-consuming and overwhelming these disputes can become.
The good news is that cryptocurrencies make fraudulent refunds a thing of the past – it is impossible to withdraw funds from cryptocurrency wallets without the permission of their owner.
Even if such a payment method exists only as an additional one, it can still significantly reduce the mentioned risks.
Embrace new, wealthier customers
According to a study of BitPay customers conducted by the research and consulting company Forrester Consulting, 40% of customers who prefer to pay with cryptocurrency come to the seller for the first time.
In addition, customers who prefer blockchain tend to spend twice as much money as those who pay with credit cards, and are more likely to return another time if their experience is positive.
This is especially true for businesses that serve the demographic group of educated men under the age of 34 – accepting crypto payments does not make sense for them, since they own the largest share of decentralized wealth in the world.
By allowing them to spend this wealth on your enterprise, you can significantly increase total sales and revenue, which leads us to the following argument.
Use crypto for marketing opportunities
If new customers come to you just because your business accepts some of the cryptocurrencies they own, it means that you have few decent marketing opportunities.
As a company engaged in the processing of crypto payments, we daily observe the success of merchants who advertise themselves as institutions friendly to cryptocurrencies.
In their opinion, you not only provide a product or service, but also make them available to as many people as possible and let them know that if you own a cryptocurrency, then you are always welcome.
Companies such as booking service Travala perfectly embody this way of thinking, showing that a crypto-oriented approach and smart use of social networks can boost sales for any type of business that decides to accept digital assets.
By providing funds for cryptocurrency payments, merchants gain a competitive advantage in the early adopter market and access to a new segment of customers, which only gets wider over time.
You can even collaborate with your payment provider to get more opportunities for cryptocurrency buyers online. In other words, if you use this opportunity wisely, it will pay off sooner rather than later.
Stay in control of your money
Cryptocurrency returns the actual ownership of money to people, including businesses. When you receive money in cryptocurrency, you decide for yourself whether you want to keep it in the form in which it is on the blockchain, or immediately exchange it for local fiat currency through third-party payment processors after receiving the final settlement.
Although it is worth noting that even if it is easy to accept bitcoin payments on your own, collecting several coins at the same time without outside help can quickly turn into endless hassle and a tax nightmare.
This is the main reason why most businesses do not develop cryptocurrency payment rails on their own, but instead do not bother at all or cooperate with other companies that can do all the work for them and even offer flexibility that they never dreamed of.
It’s easy and affordable to implement
If you are one of such tough entrepreneurs, you can create your own Bitcoin payment system using the open source BTCPay Server point of sale application – an independent open source payment processor for everyone.
This option is the most secure, private, 100% protected from censorship, and, in addition, accepting bitcoin transactions through it is free. The disadvantage is that you are left to yourself. You manage your private keys yourself, exchange the proceeds for local currency and independently conduct KYC of clients.
This can be a great option if you want to work with Bitcoin only. However, these days many companies want to collect payments in several coins or tokens at once and have all the tools to manage their cryptocurrency transactions without turning the whole process into a burden.
We at wellcoinex do just that – we provide merchants with everything they need to accept payments in numerous cryptocurrencies, while simultaneously guiding your customers through the entire payment process, and provide many options for withdrawing the collected funds (for example, to a digital wallet address or to a bank account).
Wellcoinexalso processes overpaid and underpaid orders, provides refunds when and if possible, and provides additional tools for the convenience of sellers, such as email billing/direct billing services or collecting payments via the Bitcoin Lightning Network without creating your own node.
It’s easy to set up the system, and the integration itself, no matter which method you choose, costs nothing. The only fee that wellcoinexcharges is 1% of the volume of transactions processed, and that’s it.
How to start accepting crypto payments and what to consider before starting
Before accepting cryptocurrency payments, the first thing to think about is whether you want to do it yourself or hire an assistant like Wellcoinex. It completely depends on what you want to achieve.
As we have already found out, independent work can be burdensome and impose some restrictions compared to hiring specialized companies. Management and maintenance will require special personnel, as well as time to master the crypto industry.
But let’s say you plan to accept several currencies and want to be able to receive final payments in your national currency (which also solves many of the tax consequences associated with cryptocurrencies).
In this case, there is no better way than to hire a payment processor that can handle even the most minor tasks when it comes to collecting crypto payments.
Wellcoinex offers several ways to create crypto payment methods, such as integration using plugins, buttons, billing functions or a code library that allows deeper customization through a special API, which leads to improved customer service.
All of them come with a well-thought-out payment infrastructure and a control panel for tax and accounting purposes.
Need more information? You can find out how crypto payments work on Wellcoinex by clicking on the highlighted link.
In addition, read the guide for accepting cryptocurrency payments.
Businesses that currently accept cryptocurrency payments
Currently, Wellcoinex serves hundreds of businesses that actively sell their goods and services using our crypto-payment solution and process ~2500 transactions daily on average.
You can follow the our success formula and serve the ever-growing cashless society today – the first step is to create an account with Wellcoinex and start exploring the wide range of cryptocurrency services we offer.
Ready to gain a competitive advantage over your competitors?
Cryptocurrencies have not become mainstream overnight. It took thousands of people and years of training to establish their current role in the financial markets and find much-needed scaling solutions that could meet the growing demand for transactions in decentralized networks, be it Bitcoin, Ethereum or other popular blockchain solutions.
Now that the foundation for this has been made, it has become easy to become part of the global economy and accept cryptocurrency.
And with the help of payment providers, the whole process can be simplified without much effort, which, in turn, gives the business numerous advantages that you simply cannot get anywhere else.
In fact, any business can easily integrate cryptocurrency payments and join the next revolutionary movement, and, best of all, it doesn’t take much.
Are you ready to raise your level? Accept crypto payments today with the Wellcoinex and start your crypto journey right now.