Bitcoin is by far the most popular and well known of the cryptocurrencies that are out there and so it is the one we will concentrate on in this article. It is over a decade now since Bitcoin has appeared and the ways it can be used have moved far beyond the initial limitations of mostly online opportunities. It suffered, in the early days, from being unknown and new, and so people were understandably skeptical as a currency outside of government regulation was unheard of. So here we will show some of the ways you can spend bitcoins in the real world for everyday things.
Food & Drink
Initially, you found that some early pioneer cafes and bars would accept bitcoin as a method of payment. The issue was that it was generally very alternative venues that would go down this path as it was still considered, as we’ve touched on already, a very edgy and niche currency. But in the intervening years, a good number of established chains have, and do, accept bitcoin as a method of payment. Vendors include Starbucks and some Subway branches and Burger King experimented with accepting it but have since canceled the trial.
Traveling the World
Many tech-savvy and security-conscious travelers are now using bitcoin as their main form of travel cash. This has many advantages as it’s not something you can physically lose as it exists digitally in the cloud, so you are always covered. Security is great, as by it’s very nature the bitcoins are encrypted, this is why it is called a cryptocurrency, this makes it being hacked highly unlikely as the record of all bitcoins is in the blockchain which is constantly changing due to interaction with bitcoin users. But in travel, there are so many places that will take bitcoin, from the accommodation to restaurants and even travel companies. If you run short you can top up anywhere in the world, for example, here is how to buy bitcoin in South Africa.
Use as an Investment
As well as being a currency that you can spend in locations around the world, safely and securely bitcoin can be used as an investment. This works in the same way as financial investors and individuals can trade in national currencies, as the value of bitcoin changes over time in a manner that is like that of traditional currencies and the value can be measured against these currencies. The big difference is that bitcoin is considered to be much more volatile and the value peaks and drops happen much more wildly than traditional currencies and investments.
Illegal Activities
By its nature a cryptocurrency is much less traceable by the authorities and so it is often used to purchase and trade in illegal goods and services. This is often business conducted on the so-called dark web, drugs, guns, people trafficking etc. We are not recommending this but it is sadly a fact of one of the uses of bitcoin.