There are seven important challenges which are standing in the method of bitcoin (BTC) adoption, according to the Miami BTC seminar participants — and yet, BTC is very likely to see increased consumer and business adoption, that would also benefit its cost. BTC 2021, a major conference focused on the world’s number one crypto project, was held in Miami, USA, from June 4–5 — gathering tens of thousands of individuals in an in-person crypto occasion, among the first of this kind since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The insiders identified a number of significant and as noticeable, interconnected – issues which slowdown BTC’s mainstream adoption.
1. Scalability
This one is certainly not a surprise. David Shafrir, Co-Founder and President of GDA Capital, the capital markets arm of this GDA Group of Companies, named it as one of the largest issues facing BTC, given that the network, in the moment, is not capable of managing a high number of transactions. It’s managing around seven trades per second (TPS), which can be significantly less than Visa‘s ceiling of 24,000 TPS, he said, including that:
“This will not bode well for use on a worldwide scale, as increased usage would throttle transaction rate and hike fees to exorbitant amounts.”
But, there are several options in the works, including the Lightning Network, and it can be a Layer 2 scaling option designed to take the weight of transaction data. Matthew Gundrum, the advertising manager for cryptocurrency payroll service Bitwage, additionally stressed that, if BTC hopes to get more adoption, it needs to be a payments system as well. “In its present state, it is very impractical for transitions,” Gundrum said, including that innovations like the Lightning Network may change this, as companies such as Strike already demonstrate this.
2. Company accepting it for payment
Company acceptance of bitcoin as a kind of payment is a challenge, according to BitPay‘s William Zielke. 93% of customers with crypto indicate they want to have the ability to spend it, but many top retailers have yet to offer BTC as a payment alternative, ” he said. Per a recent report by BitPay and interactive news platform PYMNTS, from 8,008 US customers (present and former cryptocurrency users and nonusers) surveyed in February, 57% of former or present crypto owners made a minumum of one purchase using it annually, and 59% of customers who never owned crypto are interested in using it to make purchases later on. Meanwhile, a recent global survey by Mastercard revealed that 40 percent of these respondents are considering using crypto as a payment method.In any circumstance, the entire crypto industry is presently watching El Salvador, in which BTC is set to become legal tender in September this year and merchants will likely be obliged to accept BTC in the request of a client. However, as reported, two opposition lawmakers aim to emphasise crucial clauses in the BTC law.
3. Volatility
Another matter is volatility, reminded Shafrir, and this one surely doesn’t come as a surprise to anybody. And while some BTC proponents assert that volatility is a feature, not a bug, it is”a substantial hurdle” to mainstream adoption, the president concerned.
“While crypto veterans realize that bitcoin is the place it is now as a direct result of its inherent volatility, the average investor is unlikely to stomach a 30 percent intraday downdraw,” he said.
Notably, volatility is still one of the main arguments against bitcoin’s standing as a store of value, Shafrir mentioned, adding that”when bitcoin hits critical mass and liquidity raises on a worldwide scale, it is going to be much harder for people, or even organizations, to move the price of BTC — meaning volatility will deteriorate.”BTC volatility chart:
30-day BTC/USD volatility. Resource: buybitcoinworldwide.com
4. Legal status
William Zielke noted El Salvador’s recent move, shaking both the crypto and the non-crypto worlds – accepting BTC as a legal tender – that BitPay was encouraged to learn that bitcoin is the first country on the world to call a currency.
He added „This adoption will continue to be slow until bitcoin is determined to be a currency (versus a store of value).“
5. Education
Many consumers are not even aware by Zielke that they can and do not know how to spend their bitcoin.
To get the word out, education is necessary. Education is necessary.
Gundrum also noted a simple fact: „Bitcoin is complicated“ – many factors that you have to understand and learn about are included.
„To prioritize education and to clarify misconceptions, every company in the area should be able to enter this space with faith,“ he said.
6. Regulation vs self-regulation
Regulation is one thing that everyone can not agree on in crypto – although some people consider it to be beneficial, others consider it to be harmful.
However, many people find that a decentralized system does not fit into central regulatory frameworks, and that decentralization by design requires self-regulation.
Shafrir considered that regulations for the growth of cryptocurrencies across all major economies are still „the biggest hurdle.“
Currently Bitcoin is forced to comply with regulations and systems not designed for such innovation – and these regulations “favor incumbents over disruptors because governments are not confident about how to protect consumers and markets when the finance system is decentralized.”
On the other hand, with a traditional centralized institution, someone has control over transactions and balances, he said, concluding that:
“Governments around the world need to embrace new technology and allow crypto industry leaders to develop a self-regulatory model that encourages innovation, while protecting consumers.”
7. ‚Toxic‘ community members
Matthew Gundrum said: “The Bitcoin community feels very insular and, sometimes, toxic.”
In social networks like Twitter and Clubhouse this can be seen in particular.
And while some people argue that „these crazy, passionate people are needed,“ they also necessarily have to ensure that people are not frightened away.
„Although some people say that everybody will eventually come to Bitcoin so how the community is working does not matter now,“ Gundrum concluded.
Still waiting for the moon
Despite the obstacles, conference participants underlined the fact, that cryptography and particularly bitcoin have significant interest for consumers and businesses, as the price of crypto explosions in the future.
Gundrum said that the conference was a hint of what is to come and highlighted the staggering number of attendees and their diversity.
“This is going to be a long and hard journey, but Bitcoin is one of the most important inventions of all time and people are finally starting to wake up to that.” So the answer to the question what awaits the world’s oldest crypto is that “Bitcoin is going to the moon.”
The biggest takeover of BitPay at the conference was the exploitation of consumer and business interest, said Zielke.
For 2021 and 2022, businesses and consumers increasingly become more popular with Bitcoin and other cryptos as a means of trade and transactions. Their company’s business and consumer adoption.
