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Some of the most common questions from those just learning about cryptocurrencies are questions like “Why do I need Bitcoin?”, “What are the perks of Bitcoin?”, “What can Bitcoin get me?”. Because it can be difficult to immediately identify the most important in each case, we made a list of 20 advantages of cryptocurrencies:
1. Zero or very low commissions
Commissions are virtually independent of the amount transferred or the location of the sender and receiver. Transactions are often free. The commission is only required when generating technically large transactions that load the network, or very small amounts to avoid attacking the network by spamming it with a huge number of meaningless transactions.
There are also no subscription fees, limits, or other restrictions.
2. 24/7/365
Think about your business, not when it’s the bank’s weekend or lunch hour. If you want to send a translation at 3 a.m. on a Sunday, it will be sent at 3 a.m. on Sunday.
3. Instant Transfers
Bank-to-bank transfers take on average 3-5 business days, and maybe more if they are foreign transfers. Transactions in cryptocurrencies are instantaneous. However, when dealing with large sums of money, it is recommended to wait for a few confirmations of the transaction network, usually it takes no more than an hour.
4. Safe, reliable, secure
Cryptocurrencies use proven cryptography to store keys to access funds, with a separation of public and private keys. Similar algorithms are used by banks and other financial institutions to protect their data. And the total processing power of the Bitcoin network, which is used to protect transaction history, exceeded the processing power of any supercomputer in the world back in 2012.
5. Technology advantage
Excellent divisibility, easy transfer and authentication of virtual coins while retaining many of the benefits of cash.
6. New Opportunities
Smart contracts, multi-signatures and other advancements for business and user convenience. You can create transactions with a guarantor when, for example, two of the three signatures are required for a transaction. Smart contracts allow you to set much more complex conditions for operations.
7. Ability to send microtransactions
For example, thousandths of a dollar. This includes new opportunities to monetize content and other business opportunities.
8. Easy start
No complicated registration, age or any other restrictions. You don’t need anything other than Internet access to get started. You download the Bitcoin client to your computer or smartphone, it generates your wallet address. From now on, you can accept and send cryptocurrency.
9. Easily accept and send donations
Just publish your Bitcoin address to receive donations. In this case, the sender of the donations can send them to the address, which ensures that there is no abuse by the authorities. As happened, for example, with bank transfers to victims of the Nepal earthquake, which were forcibly transferred to the personal account of the prime minister.. You can also donate to projects like WikiLeaks without revealing your identity or fearing government persecution.
10. A supranational system
Cryptocurrency is a supranational technology like the Internet. The number of cryptocurrency outlets around the world has only increased in recent years. Even big businesses like Microsoft or Dell already accept Bitcoin for their products.
With further distribution, you don’t have to think about conversion between local currencies, lose out on commissions, and recalculate the value of a product in a familiar currency to see how much it is worth. Rubles, liras, crowns, shekels, rupees.. Bitcoin!
11. Open technology
Bitcoin source codes are open and available for anyone to study to make sure that the program performs only the declared functions and nothing more. Distributed under a free MIT license. The system is much less dependent on the human factor, trust in the issuer or regulatory authorities has been replaced by algorithms, mathematics and cryptography.
Decentralization and open development ensure that Bitcoin will not one day be shut down, taken over, or commit other malicious acts.
12. Market pricing
Cryptocurrency values are not dictated by authorities. You are not forced to accept cryptocurrency and only make certain payments in it, as it happens with public money. The value of cryptocurrency is determined only by the supply and demand ratio in the market. Free market economy.
13. The ability to circumvent any sanctions
Despite the high volatility due to the free market, the fluctuations of the cryptocurrency may be much less than the fall of national currencies in case of political instability in the state, or even the announcement of default. No dependence on central banks, local and other laws, religion, politicians and other attempts to interfere and limit your operations. Including through sanctions.
14. Expanding financial services coverage
The variety of current payment systems never provided full territorial coverage and significantly reduced the cost of remittances. This is especially true for international transfers and small amounts. For example, the commission for a transfer of 100 rubles can be 250 rubles. And in some African countries, cell phone payments and prepaid services are more common than banking.
Cryptocurrency does not require deployment of expensive infrastructure. In the simplest case it is enough to install a lightweight wallet on your smartphone and you can already receive and send payments. It is quite sufficient to reach those social strata who do not currently use banking services.
There is no distinction between international and local payments, the cost of the transaction does not depend on it. An analogy can be made with long-distance phone calls and Internet messengers like Skype. They allow you to make much cheaper calls over the Internet, allows video communications, conferences, and has a number of other advantages. Similarly, email correspondence once replaced traditional paper mail. Likewise, cryptocurrencies are now beginning to replace some traditional but obsolete payment instruments.
15. Getting rid of intermediaries such as correspondent banks
Which reduces transaction time, transaction cost, and also reduces the risk of errors. Decentralization, P2P interaction.
16. Full control of your funds
More often than not, your assets cannot be managed without your consent, it is punishable by law. But once you’ve sold your assets, that is, exchanged them for money, new rules come into play. Your money can be managed. Including, quite legally. You can have your bank account blocked, you can have a transaction withdrawn. Without any notice, you can invest your money, or give it to someone at interest. The information about the money in the account is nothing more than a record that the bank owes it to you, you no longer have control over it.
Cash is more difficult to manipulate in this way, but even without touching it in your pocket, banks can reduce its purchasing power by issuing new money. In essence, diluting your share of ownership.. For example, three months ago you could buy a laptop for a certain amount of money, but today only a calculator. Everyone is used to it and does not pay attention to it, the term “inflation” is known even to people distant from economics. Although, if someone were to take your laptop and leave a calculator in its place, it would cause a minimum of outrage.
In the same way, by directing emissions to certain groups or organizations, wealth can be redistributed without even reaching into the pockets of specific citizens.
With Bitcoin, such manipulation is not possible, due to its limited issuance and lack of stewardship of other people’s money. Transactions cannot be reversed and your account cannot be frozen.
17. Privacy
No financial censorship. You cannot be prohibited from transferring funds to or receiving funds from anyone. Only you are the owner of your money. And even more so than when dealing with cash. Also, no one can limit you in the number of purses and addresses, you can have them as much as you need. At least a new address for each transaction.
18. Remove opacity
It is not uncommon these days to find small discrepancies smaller for the customer when checking balances on bank accounts. When you contact support, most often it turns out that it was some kind of technical overdraft when withdrawing funds. Even if the client has disabled the overdraft. Often, when making international transfers, banks or payment systems automatically convert the money at their own, not the most favorable rate. Sometimes there are even double conversions, where funds are converted to the local currency and then back to the currency in which the transfer was denominated.
There is no such thing in cryptocurrencies. The fee, if it is needed at all, is specified before the transaction, you know it in advance and understand exactly how much the receiving party will receive.
19. Control where it counts
You can link specific addresses to people or organizations to control financial transactions, if you want. For example, this can be done with the state. institutions to control the intended use of funds.
20. The power of blockchain
Cryptocurrency technologies can be combined with other technologies to extract additional benefits. For example, blockchain can be used for decentralized rights management, transaction registration, and the creation of alternative independent accounting systems. It is possible to make notary services much cheaper, simplify, automate or even eliminate some obsolete organizations such as passport offices. Some banks are now experimenting with replacing SWIFT with blockchain. Decentralized services for information storage, secure communications and other services are being developed. Among other things, it is also a new business opportunity.
In conclusion
I would like to add that the genie is out of the bottle, and there is no way you can put it back in.. The cost of creating a new cryptocurrency or changing an existing one is incomparably lower than fighting it. Do not underestimate the ability of states, they certainly have enough power if they want to destroy the same Bitcoin in its current form. However, it is very easy to change its code, making it difficult for the attackers, and get the network up and running again. It is even possible to use the old Blockchain at the time stamp before the attack, meaning that all user balances will remain the same. This does not require much time or money, unlike an attack on the network. So sooner or later, these technologies will find their niche in our daily lives. Welcome to the future!