Cryptocurrencies are a hot topic in the world of business. They offer new ways to securely and efficiently send money around the globe without relying on banks or other financial institutions, which can charge high fees for these services. In general, it is safe to say that currencies will continue growing in popularity as they make life easier for everyone, from businesses to consumers. Here is a list of 6 types of cryptocurrencies you should consider accepting as payment options from your customers.
- Bitcoin (BTC)
BTC is the most famous of all currencies. It was created in 2009 by Satoshi Nakamoto. The price of BTC varies quite a bit, but it’s a perfect payment option. Even more, BTC offers many advantages to business owners, including low transaction fees and instant, irreversible transactions. Because it is completely decentralized, there are no banks to cut the profits made by businesses in exchange for processing transactions, which gives BTC significantly lower fees than other means. Bitcoin’s final goal is to become a universal currency that anyone will use regardless of their location in the world. Today, you can buy bitcoin or enable your clients with incentives in buying gift cards for their loved ones. Most shops accept bitcoin payments and this is a huge plus for everyone.
- Dogecoin
Dogecoin was created by Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer, two developers who wanted to create a new cryptocurrency that could be used for micro-transactions and would attract a wider audience, particularly those on social media sites such as Reddit or Twitter. The result was Dogecoin which is one of the more popular crypto currencies used today. The currency was created to reach a broader demographic than BTC by using the popular “Doge” internet meme as its mascot and producing physical coins that people can collect. It is now a universally accepted payment method. As a business person, you can comfortably buy cryptocurrencies and enhance your enterprise.
- Litecoin
Litecoin is another one of the well-known currencies out there. It was created by former Google engineer Charles Lee in 2011 to improve upon BTC at handling large transaction volumes. Transactions are confirmed faster with Litecoins than BTC, which means they are ideal for small and medium-sized businesses. The cryptocurrency has risen in popularity, with its value increasing by more than ten times over the years. With this, your customers can buy gift cards with cryptocurrencies from your establishment.
- Peercoin
Peercoin was created in 2012 and is currently the fourth-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization. It uses a hybrid of both Proof-of-Stake and Proof-of-Work to verify transactions, which reduces the energy consumption associated with the latter method used in currencies such as BTC. The idea is that instead of just using one form to verify transactions, Peercoin uses both in a complementary manner. Clients get to buy cryptocurrencies and spend on your business.
- Dash (Formerly Darkcoin)
Dash is a cryptocurrency formerly known as Darkcoin and XCoin but later rebranded. It stands for “Digital Cash” and was created in early 2014. Dash is built upon BTC’s core code but improves some features such as privacy, transaction speed, and security. Its transactions are almost untraceable, with the blockchain telling you only that someone sent ‘X’ amount of coins to someone else, but not who they were sent to or where the money came from. Dash also claims to provide a higher level of security by using a decentralized mining network that protects it from 51% of attacks that some other currencies are susceptible to.
- Ripple (XRP)
Ripple is yet another cryptocurrency created to be a universal currency for financial institutions and people alike. It is a real-time gross settlement system that comes with its currency called XRP. While Ripple can be used for any transaction, the main idea was to provide an alternative for international wire transfers and other slow and expensive methods of sending money around the world. With Ripple, you can send money between any currencies with just a minimal fee required. For example, if you send money to someone in Russia using your credit card, the bank will charge you 3% just for exchanging your currency into Russian rubles. Ripple instantly converts to the best rates.
Conclusion
Since currencies are open-source and decentralized, anyone can create a new cryptocurrency based on the BTC source code. This is how most of them came to be in the first place – they were created as offshoots from BTC itself. Of course, not all currencies have positive intentions or advantages over other ones. Before you buy cryptocurrencies or accept them in your business, you must research and learn more about the particular currency.
