In the crypto world, Bitcoin stands out as the most popular and recognised crypto coin. Bitcoin, which had its humble beginnings in a white paper authored by Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008, is now being widely used for digital transactions, trading, crypto staking and more. At the same time, businesses can start accepting Bitcoin for their product and services by seamlessly integrating crypto payment gateways  into their businesses. 

As of now, several large companies across the world have started accepting Bitcoin payments. Some of the popular firms that are accepting Bitcoin payments for their products or services include Wikipedia, Microsoft, and AT&T. At the same time, a few outlets of quick service restaurants such as Burger King, Subway, Pizza Hut and KFC have started accepting Bitcoin as one of the payment methods. 

If you run a business and are a crypto enthusiast, you can also start accepting Bitcoin payments from your customers to boost your sales and be the early adopter of the shift towards a crypto-driven world. 

Why Accept Bitcoin as payment? 

Adding Bitcoin as one of the payment methods comes with several benefits. Here we have listed a few advantages that you gain by integrating Bitcoin payments into your business: 

1. Security:  Bitcoin payments are highly secure as they are verified through a protocol of a distributed network. 

2. Speed:  In the case of payment gateways that accept debit or credit cards, besides other payment methods, the received funds are only available for withdrawal after a few days. However, when you receive your funds in Bitcoin, they come immediately into your crypto wallet. You can liquidate them anytime you want. 

3. Low Charges:  Another reason why you should integrate Bitcoin payments into your business is that you will have to pay lower charges per transaction than you would end up paying for a payment received via other modes of digital payments.

4. Benefit from Bitcoin’s Appreciation:  Bitcoin’s price is on the rise, and there could be major chances that the Bitcoin you received in your crypto exchange wallet for the product or service you provided to the customer may be appreciated. This could help you in making unrealised gains from every potential sale that you make. 

Steps to Integrate Bitcoin Payments to Your Business? 

Integrating Bitcoin payments into your business is easy and simple. You can complete the whole process by following a few steps that will help your business start accepting Bitcoin for the products or services you provide.  Here are the steps to integrate Bitcoin payments into your business:

Step 1: Learning About Accepting Bitcoin For Your Business 

While accepting Bitcoin for your business is easy, you need to understand a few things before you move ahead with your decision. Here are a few things that you need to consider before starting to accept Bitcoin for your business: 

• Laws: First of all, as a business, you need to understand the current laws in relation to accepting Bitcoin payments. Most of the laws are country-specific and are usually around data privacy and securing payments. You need to ensure that you as well as your Bitcoin merchant service provider comply with these laws. 
• Charges: While you can accept Bitcoin for free, you may have to pay charges when you sell the cryptocurrency. Therefore, you should be aware of the charges that your crypto wallet exchanges take for selling Bitcoin.
• Taxes: Last but not least, you need to understand the current tax laws in the country you operate. In some countries, selling Bitcoin at a profit could attract capital gains tax.

Step 2: Set up Your Bitcoin Accepting Mechanism 

Once you’re fully aware of the current scenario regarding accepting Bitcoin payments for your business, you can start setting up the mechanism to start flooding your wallet with $BTC. Cha-ching! 

To do so, you can either start accepting Bitcoin payments directly to your wallet or use a Bitcoin merchant to gather all your Bitcoin and other crypto payments in one place. The choice is yours. 

Step 3: Setting up Bitcoin Payments on an Online Website/App or Storefront

Once you’ve decided how you’re going to accept Bitcoin for your business, it’s time to do a little makeover to your website/app or storefront. 

• On the website/app, you will need to add another payment option Bitcoin. For this, you will need to have a low to high level of coding knowledge, depending on how you’re accepting your Bitcoin payments. 
• If you operate a storefront, you can simply place a QR code for your Bitcoin wallet. After scanning the QR code, customers can make the payment directly to your business wallet. 

How do you select a Bitcoin Merchant Service Provider?

Usually, it’s difficult for large-scale businesses to deploy crypto exchange wallets. Such companies have to rely on Bitcoin merchant service providers to process the payments received in the form of Bitcoin. These companies should consider the following factors before selecting the right Bitcoin merchant service provider: 

• Charges: Firstly, you should take a look at the charges a merchant service provider will take before finalizing one. These platforms usually charge a flat fee per transaction. Some of these platforms also offer premium plans in which you can reduce the charge per transaction by paying a higher upfront fee. 
• Security: Another important factor to consider here is the security of the Bitcoin payment processing platform. You don’t want to lose your hard-earned money. Therefore, consider platforms that provide military-grade security while processing Bitcoin payments. 
• Support: Last but not least, select platforms that provide proper support in terms of setting up the Bitcoin processing platform on your website or store-front as well as real-time support in case there are any issues regarding processing of Bitcoin payments.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)