Cryptocurrency has firmly entered our life. Interest in it is growing, both from large businesses, financial and banking institutions. It would be foolish to ignore a large market that competes successfully with traditional payment systems. For example, the volume of transactions only in Bitcoin exceeded the volume of transactions of the whole Western Union back in 2015. Now many large companies are trying to keep up with the global trend, offering cryptocurrency as an investment asset.

With the help of Bitcoin and a number of other popular cryptocurrencies, you can make online purchases, pay a check in a restaurant or taxi. Moreover, world-renowned banking institutions do not stand aside and also use blockchain technologies. Investing in cryptocurrency is a real way to make money because the rate of the most popular coins is growing every day. The course of Bitcoin is followed by world news agencies, millions of people on this wave are considering cryptocurrency as an investment tool.

This was not always so – at the end of 2018, there was a decline in interest in cryptocurrencies from large businesses. Bitcoin and other popular digital coins have rapidly lost value. But they started to gain weight again in 2019. Such rapid trend changes require investors to pay serious attention and learn the market, to understand the factors that influence the value of the cryptocurrency. You can lose all your savings invested in digital assets.

Attention from big business to blockchain technology

The interest in decentralized databases is associated with the desire to speed up business processes (for example, the processing of huge amounts of information). In addition, blockchain greatly improves the transparency of transactions. All these factors allow corporations to save billions of dollars. Huge sums are spent on the development of blockchain technology in relation to the tasks of a company. So, in 2019, the total costs of all those interested in the development of the blockchain amounted to $2.9 billion, and the forecasts for 2022 – at least $12 billion. Moreover, both large corporations and the governments of some countries also show interest in decentralized databases.

The largest companies with a worldwide reputation, using blockchain technology and cryptocurrency in their activities, are:

  • insurance giant from Germany – Allianz SE;
  • the world’s largest trading platform – Amazon;
  • the world leader in the production of beer from Belgium – Anheuser-Busch Inbev;
  • French bank BNP Paribas;
  • oil and gas giant from Great Britain – BP (British Petroleum);
  • the largest manufacturer of microcircuits from Taiwan – Foxconn;
  • well-known American banking group – Citigroup;
  • financial giant – Coinbase;
  • IT giant – Google;
  • another American bank – JP Morgan;
  • PayPal, Mastercard, and Visa are well-known payment systems;
  • financial giant – Nasdaq;
  • a number of electronics manufacturers – Hewlett-Packard, IBM, HTC, Intel, Samsung, Siemens, Seagate Technology;
  • the largest bank in Spain – Santander;
  • software manufacturers – Microsoft, Oracle, VMWare;
  • insurance companies – ING, Metlife, State Farm;
  • Walmart – a well-known American retailer.

This is not a complete list, a number of companies are developing decentralized databases based on the blockchain, and many accept cryptocurrency as payment for goods or services. This list also includes restaurants, bars, catering establishments, and the largest online stores.

The growing interest in cryptocurrency has largely contributed to the jump in its value. For example, after the news about the purchase of Иitcoin by Tesla for a total of $1.5 billion, the rate of the most famous cryptocurrency rose to $44,750 in just a few hours and has continued to grow since that time, having crossed the 50 thousand mark. Moreover, this is not the first investment of Tesla’s founder Elon Musk to the acceleration of prices. Every mention by Musk of his interest in digital assets is the reason for rapid price growth.

The heads of central banks of different countries also made official statements about cryptocurrency. This confirms the close attention of financial regulators of the world’s leading countries to digital assets and blockchain technology.

Among the commercial banks that were the first to equate cryptocurrency with traditional assets was the American Bank of New York Mellon.

Payment for services with cryptocurrency

The user can use different methods for payment:

  • transfer to a wallet;
  • use of third-party payment terminals – many fintech-startups are working in this direction;
  • using a QR code.

It is easy to find a company that accepts cryptocurrency as payment for services – there are special search services. Among the well-known companies that are actively developing this area, it is worth note Burger King, KFC, PapaJohn`s, Starbucks, and others. Also, a well-known franchise of coffee shops began to accept cryptocurrency for payment in the United States. Moreover, the list of tokens that can be used to pay at Starbucks is growing. PayPal was one of the first systems that allow the use of cryptocurrency, adding support for digital coins in their wallets.

Investor`s risks

The rise in the value of cryptocurrency (first of all – Bitcoin), attracts investors to digital assets, including owners of private capital. However, for a number of reasons, the digital money market is very unstable – high volatility can scare off potential depositors. In 2018, bitcoin changed its value from 3 thousand dollars to 17. Due to the fall in the value of leading digital coins, the total market capitalization has lost 90%.

Such rapid changes in the rate are dangerous for novice traders. You can lose your assets without understanding the mechanisms of price formation processes, without having tools for market analysis. On the other hand, you cannot ignore such a promising market. Moreover, serious players are showing interest in digital assets – American and European companies, world-renowned investors, central banks of the leading countries of the world. All this brings the cryptocurrency to a new level, guarantees the support of quotes.

It is best to entrust digital asset management to professionals. FOBS Asset Management has 20 years of combined experience in the digital asset world. We will take over the management of your assets and help you increase your capital. Our income depends on your profit, so we are interested in our successful partnership.