Do Bitcoins Pose A Threat To PayPal, Visa And Mastercard?The volatility of the Bitcoin's value is settling down and an increasing number of online retailers are excepting the currency. New smartphone apps are enabling Bitcoins to be used as easily as cash. From The Economist article:
Tony Gallippi, the boss of Bitpay, which processes Bitcoin payments for retailers, says that his client list has increased from around 100 in March to 1,100 now. These are mostly e-commerce businesses, selling things like domain names and web hosting. But the list also includes a taxi-driver in Chicago and a dentist in Finland. "Credit cards weren't designed for the internet," he says. Bitcoin transactions cost less and cannot be reversed in the way credit-card transactions can be. This is important for firms selling to customers in countries known for credit-card fraud, such as Russia or Belarus.
