Bitcoin has been taking the world by storm recently, Europe in particular. While Berlin was actually labelled as the Bitcoin Capital of Europe in 2013, several other organisations have been embracing the cryptocurrency and incorporating it into their services and payment options. With this in mind, how exactly are these European companies utilising the benefits on Bitcoin though? We have all of the information you need here, so cash out your Bitcoins, complete your ‘EHIC Renew’ form and start touring Europe to reap the benefits!
Raising Awareness Of Their Brand
Considering that cryptocurrencies are quite popular in America, Bitcoin in particular, it’s important that European businesses can keep up with the media coverage, and it’s safe to say that they’re succeeding. With Bitcoin suddenly booming over the last couple of years, there is an extensive amount of media coverage around the world, meaning that by simply embracing the digital currency, you’re able to receive a larger client base simply down to the publicity.
Lower Transaction Fees
A large reason as to why European countries are accepting Bitcoin is due to the lower transaction fees. Bitcoin is able to make all transactions seamless, as there’s no need for a middle man and thus can be made almost immediately. However, that’s a benefit for companies throughout the world, so why does the use of Bitcoin benefit Europe in particular?
Well, with the UK’s departure from the EU being put in place, exchange rates and transaction fees are suddenly very uncertain and volatile within Europe. As a result, European countries could largely benefit from adopting cryptocurrencies instead, as these are universal across all countries! This will make trade and transactions much easier amidst so much uncertainty, eliminating the need to worry about exchange rates and highly volatile currency values.
Berlin – The European Bitcoin Capital
Europe has clearly embraced Bitcoin with open arms in recent years, Berlin in particular. Now, when in Berlin, you have the opportunity to eat and drink in numerous bars across the city or, even better, purchase your very own apartment! Berlin has voiced its reason to be so accepting of the cryptocurrency, and said that the algorithm is highly transparent to everybody, so there’s no political vision or decision involved with the transactions. Plus, nobody is able to control the payments, making security much higher and legitimate, which is important considering a large amount of Berlin’s organisations operate within the financial sector.
Microsoft
Multinational company Microsoft have begun incorporating Bitcoin into their services around the world since December 2014. Both Windows and Xbox stores have accepted Bitcoin as a payment method, but that isn’t the end of Microsoft’s efforts to utilise the digital currency. Additionally, they were actively behind the launch of Azure Blockchain, which is a service platform designed to grant access to blockchain technologies for large-scale businesses, helping them to facilitate the settlement of financial data. In fact, Microsoft have recently announced the introduction of the technology into Excel 2017, allowing users to calculate and analyse Bitcoin using the spreadsheet software, which will be highly useful for European businesses utilising the currency.
Bitcoin has proved to be popular amongst consumers, however it’s boasting huge benefits and future potential for businesses as well. With the ability to streamline services and provide more flexible payment methods for customers, we can only wait to see how Bitcoin’s capabilities grow.
