Why would anyone spend bitcoins?

Why would anyone spend bitcoins?(purse.io)

2 points by 2drew3 12 years ago | 5 comments

"Merchant adoption is not THE barrier to Bitcoin commerce - it’s the lack of incentive to spend."

Accepting Bitcoin from a merchant perspective is a brain dead decision. "Save over 50% on your transaction costs" is an easy sales pitch. Convincing people to spend bitcoins - that's the real challenge.

2drew3 12 years ago |

"Merchant adoption is not THE barrier to Bitcoin commerce - it’s the lack of incentive to spend."

Merchants accepting Bitcoin is a brain dead decision. "How would you like to save over 50% on payment processing?" is the easiest sales pitch around. The real challenge is convincing Bitcoin holders to spend.

dublinben 12 years ago |

This is an even greater hurdle to overcome now that spending a Bitcoin is a taxable event. According to the IRS, precisely which Bitcoin you spend has significant consequences. Without fungiblity, Bitcoin is not a practical currency.

mrkent 12 years ago | |

Applications that will automatically keep track of these events are on the horizon. The cryptocurrency industry is still in its infancy.

2drew3 12 years ago | |

Great point. Hopefully, IRS will reconsider and treat BTC as a currency.

masoneyewear 12 years ago |

love what you guys are doing at purse.io. We plan on accepting bitcoin soon as well!