What Are the Practical Uses for Crypto

What Are the Practical Uses for Crypto?

Youve probably heard a lot about cryptocurrency. After all, the concept lives and dies on hype, so it wouldnt exist if no one was talking about it. Its probably the case that youve heard its a great investment and that if you invest your money will grow. But then what? Do you simply pull your money out again and transfer it back into USD? It seems like, for a currency that prides itself on not needing to use the banks, it needs to use the banks.

Not necessarily. It turns out, even in these early days, there is still a lot you can use direct cryptocurrency for. Travelling, cars, assets, all have some form of embracement of crypto. If you are also lost in trying to navigate the crypto world, take a look at our guide to practical reasons why you should get involved.

Buying a Lambo or Tesla

Being the pioneer of cryptocurrency itself, its no surprise that Tesla CEO Elon Musk is hinting that he will soon be accepting Bitcoin as a form of payment for his self-driving cars. He has been a vocal supporter of crypto, bringing it to the attention of the masses, for all the ups and downs that come with it, and has always touted crypto as the way of the future.

Hes done so well in fact that Lamborghini are getting in on the act. This isnt due to the owners accepting it as a payment method, but rather crypto luxury marketplace, De Louvois, which allows those with enough crypto to purchase sports cars using Bitcoin.

Travel the world

For the Millennial with an ongoing wanderlust craving, you can now even see the world with Bitcoin. At the moment, travel agents like CheapAir and Destinia are accepting the currency to book flights, hotels, and rental cars, but more are expected to get on board. And those who want to stay in an apartment can look to CryptoCribs to book a place with Bitcoin or Ethereum.

Plus, the local currency will be accounted for, with the growth of the Bitcoin ATM market exploding allowing travelers to withdraw the local currency in a lot of major cities around the world. So you dont need to worry about a conversion rate once you get there.

Gambling

A lot of online casinos have also embraced cryptocurrency. You will see a lot of payment options on all casino websites, but more and more of them are embracing crypto as a means of depositing into the site.

You can also withdraw from the site with crypto, sending an extra chunk of change to your e-wallet. Due to the lack of red tape around the payments, crypto is faster at sending you your money, so it has become popular amongst gamblers.

Be paid to post

So being an influencer is nothing new. People all over the world are being paid to post on social media with the help of affiliate marketing, but now they can be paid in cryptocurrency. Blogging platform Steemit allows its users to receive cryptocurrency financial rewards for posting their content on the site, and thereby growing the platform. Its a win-win for influencers and the site.

Steemit has pointed out it would rather offer their users crypto than to collect data to sell to third parties like Facebook and Instagram are known for, which has made it very popular in emerging markets, and of course the users of the site.

Superior transfers

The higher amount a transaction is, the more time and cost it will take to process. Transactions of traditional money have to go through the bank, and all the red tape that comes with that, whereas cryptos decentralized currency has the ability to bypass the bank and its policies.

This means that there have been massive transactions made with hardly any fees or time. For example, Litecoin recently oversaw the transaction of 99 million LTC, which took two and a half minutes and cost $0.40 in fees.

These transfers are also usually private, with Mondero, Zxahs, and PIVX all offering anonymous transactions to their traders. Plus, you can earn interest on Bitcoin and some other cryptocurrencies with yield farming. You can lend your crypto out for interest and occasionally fees to gain some return on your investment.

And of course, as mentioned, you can now get your crypto from an ATM, instantly converting it into the national currency you need wherever you are.

Invest in start-ups

Nowadays, everyone is starting a business. With the invention of the internet, it is more realistic than ever to do it yourself and get something out there youve wanted to see.

Well, now that will be easier to manage when anyone in the world can now be an investor, so says the peoples currency. Crypto has made it a lot easier to get around the red tape that come with stocks, which are a primary resource in getting a new business off the ground. This is what has given it the reputation as the peoples money, allowing for a lot more investment and innovation to land on the market.

Innovations like ICOs and IPOs are allowing potential investors to provide start-ups with the funds they initially need and offer start-ups the chance to raise their own capital. They do this by selling a digital token for an established crypto like Bitcoin or Ethereum and the token is proxy linked to the growth of the business after it begins to trade in the secondary market.

In past cases, ICOs and IPOs have grown in value by over 1,000% and crypto fundraising has raised over $12 billion in two years.

A back up wealth

The problem with the banks is the vast amount of policies and regulations to wade through. How anyone gets anything done is a mystery.

When you hear about cryptocurrency and its decentralized system youll also hear talk of the peoples currency and Robin Hood, taking the socialist approach to appeal to the little man. This is because there is no need for the bank with cryptocurrency. It governs itself and sustains itself.

So, there is no need to worry about the possibility of your crypto assets getting frozen if you make some powerful enemies. It can serve as a valuable Plan B to your finances. Its not uncommon to be accused of a small financial hiccup and soon see your accounts wiped, so having a decent stash of Bitcoin or Ethereum tucked away that the banks cannot access is an appealing idea.