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There is no doubting that Bitcoin is an attractive asset that is worth holding on to. However, it is also being realized more and more often for its original intention, to be an electronic cash system.
More adoption of Bitcoin, especially from companies and startups, has seen a more significant boom in potential use cases of BTC that extends further than merely HODLing. It may still gain value for you today, but you can also spend it in more places too.
Another way of putting it is that you can also give it away to more places nowadays, it has become a powerful tool for donations; using cryptocurrency for good. We have seen an increase in areas accepting cryptocurrency for donations, but it is also because they are a better alternative than the usual methods.
Cryptocurrency, especially on a global level, is faster and cheaper to send than traditional payments methods, it also offers those receiving the donation an immutable, fully transparent ledger, to show where their donations are going and how they’re being used.
As more people realize the benefits of receiving Crypto for donations, more companies are also entering the space to streamline this process far more effectively than tools like PayPal ever would.
Crypto vs. Traditional payment methods
With the world becoming fully digitized, it is also globalizing at a rapid rate. News and information, causes and charities, no matter where they are in the world, are in touching distance of all citizens. However, payment methods are a lot more closed off and bordered.
Cryptocurrencies have a distinct advantage over traditional means of payment in that they are decentralized and borderless. If I want to send Bitcoin to someone sitting next to me, it is the same as if I was sending it to the southern point of Chile.
This means that those charities across the world can open their nets wider, not only to tell their story but to ask for donations – to receive payments quickly and simply through cryptocurrency.
Previous to having cryptocurrency as a donation option, using something like PayPal would mean shaving some of the donations off for the fees, and also the potential for regulations to slow things down.
Why Crypto is better
If we break down an example of donating cryptocurrency, we can see why it would be a superior option than trying to make the same payment by traditional means.
If I want to donate to the refugee crisis in Chad, as long as the charity has the means set up, which is relatively simple with things like NOWpayments, then I can easily send a figure in a particular cryptocurrency without the need of a centralized company.
It will be quick, it will hardly cost any fees, and for the charity in Chad, they will have a record of all the funds that have come in that you know you can trust not to have been tampered with. The donation ledger is transparent, immutable, and decentralized.
Moreover, the cryptocurrency space is still developing, but its community is a powerful and vivacious one. Allowing for cryptocurrency donations will open up charities to a new community that will be happy to use their cryptocurrency for good.
A growing alternative
From a purely mechanical standpoint, accepting payment in cryptocurrency makes a lot more sense than going about it the traditional way. The ease of setting up a NOWpayments system on a charity website, for example, is also far easier than the regulatory hurdles that come with trying to do this through banks or payment networks.
What is also important to note is that cryptocurrencies, although first designed to be a payment alternative from the very beginning – Bitcoin’s white paper calling it ‘a peer-to-peer electronic cash system’ – that has not been the direction they have gone.
Bitcoin became one of the best-performing assets for a few years running and with that comes the desire to keep hold of the currency, rather than spend, send, or donate it. However, there are forces pushing Bitcoin back towards its intended purpose, such as the Lightning Network.
Micro-tipping for content creation is starting to gain real traction – even on Twitter, people are getting rewarded in cryptocurrency as easily as pushing the like button. The idea of micro-tipping is not far off from donating in cryptocurrency, but the simplicity is almost the same.
Cryptocurrency is designed to be the future of money, and when money is used for good, it can be a compelling thing. But, when money is hindered by outdated systems, it is sad to witness.
