It’s no secret that the Blockchain industry has endured massive challenges in the last decade, achieving unprecedented heights followed by dramatic lows. However, in the previous two years, we have witnessed a complete shift in the development trajectory of crypto as the blockchain industry has gradually matured.
As of 2024, the crypto landscape looks almost unrecognisable, focusing on value-driven projects and utility-based currencies and returning to the initial promise of affordable, fast and decentralised payments.
So, as a business in this climate, accepting cryptocurrency payments is not just a nifty bonus but a necessary step toward outsmarting your competition. This piece will analyse why you should accept crypto payments on your digital platform and review possible cryptocurrency payment solutions that could enrich your pool of accepted currencies.
How Your Business Benefits from Accepting Cryptos
In 2024, there are 15,000 registered companies that accept cryptocurrency payments. Among them are industry leaders like Amazon, Microsoft, and AT&T. Global corporations are becoming increasingly open to the idea of implementing cryptos as a legitimate payment method. But why is that the case? Isn’t crypto one of the most volatile money markets in the world?
Speed, Affordability and New Revenue Streams
Despite its volatile and high-risk nature, the crypto market offers a Pareto improvement over fiat payments, especially internationally. Conventional transfers with fiat currency take several business days or weeks to finalise and incur unreasonably excessive transaction fees.
Contrarily, crypto payments can be processed without the intervention of numerous central banks and excessive inspections, which allows virtual currencies to finalise much faster and at a fraction of the cost. Crypto also allows users to avoid needless privacy breaches, as their personal information doesn’t need to be disclosed during transactions.
Due to the recent resurgence of crypto and enhanced regulatory safeguards, individuals have started paying more actively with cryptocurrency. So, accepting crypto payments has become a dominant strategy for digital businesses, as they can cultivate a new revenue stream of users while allowing their customers to avoid excessive commission charges.
The size of the crypto-only payers market has increased dramatically in 2024, which means that this revenue stream is practically untapped and can significantly boost profits.
Early Bird Opportunity in a Volatile Market
The crypto market has been around for a while, reaching fifteen years of existence in 2024. However, in business terms, this market is still in its relative infancy, with many opportunities ahead. So, accepting Bitcoin and other crypto payment options can open up a blue ocean of possibilities for your company.
Crypto owners and enthusiasts are passionate about developing a completely decentralised version of the Internet where cryptocurrency solutions are the primary means of payment. Any company that supports this movement can set itself up for future opportunities, branching out into the decentralised landscape and potentially expanding beyond conservative predictions.
Diversity is the X-Factor
Any business that accepts crypto payments is inherently more diverse than fiat-only competitors. Balancing fiat and crypto reserves as a business could provide a great risk management strategy, as the two currency types are often on opposite sides of the upside. If fiat currencies experience volatility, cryptocurrencies often experience a bump in valuation.
However, if you only accept Bitcoin payments and no alternative coins, your expansion and profit opportunities might become limited. So, it is crucial to implement a crypto payment gateway that accommodates diverse crypto wallet connections, allowing you to accept payments with numerous virtual currencies instead of the few popular options.
While Bitcoin and Ethereum currently dominate the market, many promising projects are climbing the ranks of altcoins in 2024. So, it is advisable not to settle on the easiest option and integrate a payment processing system that can link up with various crypto wallets.
Most Popular and Value-Driven Crypto Currencies to Accept
As mentioned above, diversity is essential not just in the present but for future ambitions when considering a crypto payment integration. Different currencies and networks have unique strengths and limitations. So, your target audience should have the option to pay with their preferred currency and through their desired crypto network. Below, we present the most popular currency options to accept and analyse their unique advantages compared to the rest of the market.
1) Bitcoin's Dominance is Still Unchallenged
Unsurprisingly, Bitcoin still leads the charge in the world of virtual currencies. The Bitcoin payment system is undisputed in its dominance due to its global adoption rate and comparative stability. Bitcoin remains the face of crypto due to its reputation and high upside. This flagship currency has been named among the best possible investments of the 2010s, and its current bull run exceeds even the most optimistic expectations.
Bitcoin is more appropriate for crypto holders, as it is a speculative currency, and its biggest value is its potential upside. However, due to its high profile and industry-leading popularity, numerous users still prefer Bitcoin over any other currency as a payment option. So, integrating the Bitcoin cash payment API should be at the top of your list.
Bitcoin API solutions dominate the payment processing market, with leading API providers offering their iteration on Bitcoin payment gateways. Businesses can obtain Bitcoin payment processing solutions without sacrificing quality, security, or accessibility.
So, if you consider integrating virtual currencies into your digital infrastructure, the Bitcoin Cash API is a strong start for your new payment option. Most large corporations prefer to receive payment through Bitcoin as the flagship currency is still the safest bet in crypto and doesn’t require immediate crypto-to-fiat conversion.
2) Ethereum is a Go-to Ecosystem for Smart Contracts
Like Bitcoin, Ethereum has remained the second most dominant currency. The network’s extensive utilities and tech-oriented value cultivated Ethereum's steadfast reputation. Ethereum still offers the most reliable, customisable, and accessible smart contract protocol in the world. Proponents of Web 3.0 and decentralised solutions are actively investing in Ethereum since it represents the most advanced smart contract ecosystem.
The smart contract functionality has numerous applications, including healthcare, insurance, supply chain management, finance, distribution, and more.
However, ETH is not a flawless currency for regular purchase transfers, as the network suffers from congestion issues and bloated gas fees. However, like Bitcoin, many crypto owners prefer ETH over Altcoin due to its reputation and relative stability. Acquiring an ETH payment gateway is relatively straightforward and will not cost you a lot of extra money, especially if you already have a general Blockchain payment gateway.
3) Ripple Serves as a Viable SWIFT Alternative
Ripple is one of the oldest Altcoins available on the market. Despite its failure to maintain a stable valuation above $1, ripple is one of the most actively used currencies in the world, with a daily circulation of coins exceeding $2.66 billion. Ripple’s exceptional market activity is not a coincidence, as XRP’s creators deliberately created a system that rivals international SWIFT payments.
XRP can be transferred in seconds and at market-low transaction fees, allowing users to conduct payments swiftly across the entire globe. As a result, XRP has become a go-to payment coin for daily purchases and online shopping activities. The only downside of Ripple is its inability to maintain stable prices, which scares some crypto owners from regularly using XRP in their daily transfers.
Ripple API is quite easy to obtain, as it often comes bundled with other popular Altcoins like Ethereum. So, if you already have any type of payment gateway in place, you can seamlessly accept Ripple payments without spending any extra money on additional software.
4) Stellar is Accessible to Average Users
While Ripple’s strategy was to disrupt the banking industry on an international scale, Stellar has a similar goal but with average traders and crypto owners. XRP and Stellar share many similarities, including low-cost transactions and lightning-fast processing times. However, Stellar focuses more on accessibility, making the entire system more streamlined for average users unfamiliar with banking or crypto.
Stellar is also more accessible for third-world countries due to its low energy and internet requirements. So, if you accept stellar payments, you might have an entirely new revenue stream comprised of users from multiple countries or continents.
5) Cardano has Answers to the Blockchain Trilemma
Cardano’s Blockchain network was created by engineers and developers who set a clear goal for themselves – to solve the Blockchain Trilemma. This problem is well-documented with Bitcoin and Ethereum, failing to provide all three aspects promised by cryptocurrencies – security, decentralisation and scalability. In most cases, popular coins had to sacrifice the scalability pillar of the Blockchain trinity, but the creative team behind Cardano has devised an innovative solution.
The creative team behind Cardano has built a validation protocol that doesn’t depend on high energy consumption. Moreover, Cardano’s governance model and an innovative variation on the proof-of-stake algorithm have contributed to the platform’s swift scalability. Validators and proposers on the network are chosen through the democratic governance model, and their backgrounds are checked vigorously to eliminate the chances of human tampering.
So, Cardano is another robust blockchain network that acts as a spiritual successor to Ethereum, prioritising technological improvements and the core decentralisation concept over everything else. However, unlike Ethereum, Cardano is more successful at preventing congestion issues. Finding a Cardano payment provider is not challenging since Cardano API often comes bundled with other popular altcoin payment options.
6) Litecoin is Perfect for Smaller Transactions
Litecoin’s mission in the crypto landscape is very similar to Ripple and Stellar, as all three currencies aim to facilitate fast, affordable and secure transactions. However, Ripple is more focused on conducting large international transactions, and Stellar prioritises simplicity in its systems. Litecoin, conversely, is aimed at processing smaller transfer amounts, accommodating transactions even below a single dollar.
So, Litecoin is extremely valuable for individuals who wish to purchase goods and services exclusively with crypto but want to avoid excessive commission charges for every transfer.
Moreover, Litecoin has managed to maintain an impressive stable price throughout the years thanks to its airtight tokenomics and a successful implementation of deflationary distribution. Litecoin’s supply is capped at 84 million, which will most likely prevent the coin from going below $60 in the foreseeable future.
So, adopting a Litecoin payment gateway is a great idea to accommodate a growing niche of crypto owners, especially if your business deals with smaller products or services that should be purchased regularly.
7) Dash is a Powerhouse in Crypto Security
The Dash blockchain has been recognised as one of the most secure networks in the crypto landscape. Thanks to its robust security protocol, Dash can conceal the information of cryptocurrency transactions, allowing users to maintain anonymity without any hassle.
Additionally, Dash has an InstantSend feature that accelerates transaction processing capabilities, allowing crypto owners to process payments within minutes or seconds. As a result, Dash payment gateway solutions have become increasingly popular globally, accommodating smaller transfers swiftly and efficiently. While Dash’s pricing history is all over the place, hitting big highs and lows in the last decade, the currency has managed to maintain a stable price for the previous year.
So, owning Dash for routine purchases is no longer a massive risk that could lead to monetary losses for average crypto owners. Finding a Dash payment provider is not a huge problem, as it is one of the most significant altcoins in the current market and often comes bundled with a package of the most popular payment processors for cryptocurrencies.
Using Robust Cryptocurrency Merchant Services
The abovementioned flagship coins and altcoins can create a strong portfolio of crypto payment options for your business. Every coin possesses unique strengths and weaknesses, and crypto owners are often committed to their favourite cryptocurrency. So, having a balanced mix of popular altcoins in your stack is crucial to maximise your crypto-based target audience.
Aside from the careful balancing, you must obtain the best crypto payment processor you can afford. Partnering with premier gateway providers is vital in your future expansion of crypto payment methods. Proper gateway providers will help you expand or modify your supported currencies without increasing processing or service fees.
Moreover, high-level gateway providers will also give you access to the best crypto-fiat gateway, an important tool for non-blockchain businesses. Converting crypto into fiat funds is essential for small and mid-sized businesses, allowing them to increase monthly cash flow balances and pay off their suppliers or debtors in due time.
Final Takeaways
Adopting a diverse payment gateway and accepting carefully selected cryptocurrencies is becoming a dominant strategy for forward-looking businesses. However, it is not enough to take crypto payments as a purchase option on your platform. Getting acquainted with the leading cryptocurrency options is a must, allowing you to create a balanced portfolio of offerings that satisfies the different needs of your target audience.
Some users prioritise low costs, while others prefer maximum security or price stability. Only providing BTC or ETH will not be enough to keep up with the competition in this niche. So, we advise you to conduct in-depth research on the abovementioned currencies and explore newer options since the crypto landscape is growing and changing rapidly.
