How merchants can accept payments in digital currencies
Step-by-step guide on how merchants can accept payments in cryptocurrencies.
Many businesses around the world accept cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin as means of payment. Therefore, whether your business is small, medium or large, you can accept payment in digital currencies.
Apart from an increase in revenue, your business benefits from secure payments and lower transaction costs. As a result, you may make more profit. Also customers who use cryptocurrencies cannot reverse their payments.
Another benefit of using cryptocurrencies is an increase in customers. The global interest in digital currencies is gaining momentum and therefore, it’s smart for businesses to start accepting cryptocurrencies as form of payment as more and more people and businesses adopt them.
How to incorporate crypto payments methods in your business
There are two broad ways of accepting payments in cryptocurrencies. A business can use a gateway or accept direct payment into its crypto wallet.
Direct payment
This is mostly applicable to small businesses. As a merchant, you should open an account with a reputable and secure crypto organisation such as Binance or Atomic. After opening the account, you get your selected cryptocurrency wallet address, which is a sequence of digits and letters.
However, it is more convenient to present your wallet in form of QR-code. The customers will only have to scan the code using their mobile applications and authorize payments using their private keys, the way we use our credit cards on swipe machines.
When a customer wants to make a payment, you give him/her the wallet address. That is where he/she will deposit the payment. In order to withdraw the funds in fiat currency you link your credit card or bank account to your crypto exchange.
As you can see, many of the exchanges have options to link your card. You can withdraw you funds in a currency of your choice.
If you need US dollars or pounds, you simply indicate that. The money is transferred to your bank account immediately.
Using a gateway
The second way to get payments in cryptocurrencies is to use a gateway. There are many payment processors that allow you to do so. For example, you can use hardware point-of-sale solutions just like swiping machines. These are specific to certain cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin.
Once a merchant has the Bitcoin payment terminal, for example, customers can make their payments.
There are many crypto companies that provide cryptocurrency payment terminals. The following are such companies:
Coinkite: It provides bitcoin payment terminal which can scan bitcoin debit cards. This card operates at bitcoin ATMs or prints out QR-codes which customers can scan.
BitPay: This global payment processor integrates point-of-sale-systems for any business.
BitXatm and XB terminal also provide point-of-sale systems for businesses. To start, a merchant has to consult any of these companies.
Coinbase Commerce, Gocoin, Btcpay, B2BinpAY, Bitcartcc and BITCARCC offer similar but differentiated services that allow you to receive payments in cryptocurrencies of your choice. However, some of these, such as B2BinpAY only allow you to receive payments in bitcoins.
Coinbase is another unique payment processor which enables you to receive payment in bitcoins and converts it instantly into the fiat currency of your choice.
Decentralised Africa also has some excellent merchant adoption resources you can look. If interested in places where you can buy things with crypto, you can check out our directory.
How to get started
It is simple to accept payments in cryptocurrencies. All you need to do is to approach any of these companies and utilise their services.
Promoting your business
The good news is that once your crypto payment system is ready, you can inform many potential customers around the world about your ability to receive payments in cryptocurrencies. To do that, you register with the merchant directories such as Coppay, Maltamap, coinmap.org, Gocrypto and GoBitcoin.cash, among others.
Such registering allows you to serve customers from all over the world.
