As personal banking becomes highly digitized, innovative online mediums for sourcing and sending monies is slowing gaining popularity. While not in the same league as the other commonly used digital payment systems (in terms of acceptance and usage), Bitcoin has its staunch advocates. Today, in common parlance, bitcoins are seen as something to be cautious about, however with time and enhanced integration, this cryptocurrency is expected to be a common option in the near future.
Digital currencies such as bitcoins suffer from the problem of being branded as a novelty, and something that will probably be used by a very niche user base. Recent events such as the WannaCry Ransomware attack, wherein bitcoins were demanded as the mode of appeasement, only harms the reputation of this fledgling digital payment system. If bitcoins must thrive, the myth surrounding them must be annulled and their usage in the common scheme of things must be encouraged.
One amongst many- Bitcoin must defend its standing and improve functionality
When talks center around digital cryptocurrency, bitcoins are instantly mentioned thanks to the latter’s exploits in terms of visibility, longevity (originally launched in 2009) and steadily incrementing relevance. However, there are others too. Ethereum, Ripple, Litecoin and Dogecoin are the other key players in the digital currency market. The relevance of each is incrementing whilst bitcoin still remains the overwhelming favorite in this domain.
However, a unique digital currency such as bitcoin does encounter its own unique brand of roadblocks. The latest such concern relates to bitcoin forks- a unique concept that is intimately associated with the bitcoin blockchain (a shared digital ledger that powers the bitcoin ecosystem). In this context, a ‘fork’ relates to a situation on the blockchain when different transactional participants must agree on a common rule, in relation to the two or more ‘forks’ offered by the aforementioned ecosystem. Bitcoin forks are relatively new and the science of studying them must mature further. Currently, mutual agreements help resolve these bitcoin forks, however, when participants do not agree on the options, the network tends to split permanently, resulting in two unique blockchain histories and consequently, two separate currencies!
The Road Ahead : Leading the charge for cryptocurrencies
Whilst the challenges are many, it’s hard to argue against the fact that bitcoins could be the final eventuality to the necessity for a stable, widely used and highly scalable digital cryptocurrency. Already, investors deem bitcoins a safe option for investment owing to their huge market share and highest acceptance rate, compared to other digital currencies. Additionally, bitcoins help in the streamlining of international money transfers, thereby aiding investors in dealing with the foreign exchange market without incurring huge transactional costs.
The other encouraging factor is the rise of peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platforms. These connect both the lenders and borrowers and offers great insights in terms of the risks associated with investments. P2P lending operates internationally and supports a wide variety of digital currencies including bitcoins.
Market insights help investors strategize better
The future of the global digital coin market has been comprehensively fleshed out in a market research report of the same name from Technavio. Offering complete insights into the global system of digital currencies through 2016-2020, the report can be sampled for free via the links listed herein.
