Will Bitcoin ever become a widely adopted global payment solution?

[brainactive]

Satoshi envisioned Bitcoin as a Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System. While it can and has been used for payments, its use as a medium of exchange has so far been very limited.

It has moved from being a collectible to a store of value. Will it ever move to being a widely adopted medium of exchange and global payment solution?

[mk4]

People are working on layer-2 solutions such as Lightning to make it quicker and cheaper to transact with bitcoin; and trust me when I say that there's progress even though the space is developing slower than what people want.

[Fundamentals Of]

No doubt about it. It will happen. It is starting to happen actually. Only time can tell when it will really become a big thing as a global payment system.

As mk4 said, layer-2 innovations are now being offered globally so Bitcoin could now be used in small-amount transactions. For larger transactions, Bitcoin is already in use, although it is still a factor that adoption is still in its peak. So the price is still rising very quickly causing Bitcoin owners to rather keep them rather than spend them.

[pooya87]

Satoshi envisioned Bitcoin as a Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System.

This vision was achieved from day one that bitcoin was created. Keep in mind that being a "currency" is not about how mass adopted bitcoin is, but it is about its capability to act as a currency.
Think of it this way, you can go to a grocery store and ask if they accept bitcoin and pay with it if they do. You can also go to a grocery store (let's assume you live in US) and ask to pay with Yuan and if pay for it if they do. If the store refuses to accept Yuan it doesn't mean Yuan is not a currency.

As for mass adoption I say a couple of things have to happen first which could take about 10 more years. First the bitcoin market has to grow bigger to the point where its price becomes more stable and we don't see 10000% rises in 4 years anymore. That requires a much higher price too. Also the scaling has to be improved more than the current state.

[nutildah]

In some ways Bitcoin already is a global payment solution. There are quite a few remittance-type wallet services out there in blockchain-friendly countries that provide cheap on- and off-ramps to local fiat currencies, allowing individuals to bypass traditional services like Western Union. Same thing for cross-border commercial enterprise.

As for mass adoption I say a couple of things have to happen first which could take about 10 more years. First the bitcoin market has to grow bigger to the point where its price becomes more stable and we don't see 10000% rises in 4 years anymore. That requires a much higher price too. Also the scaling has to be improved more than the current state.

These are all great points.

I don't mind if Bitcoin never reaches true "mass adoption" and am not waiting for it to become the one-world currency. It's already been successful beyond anyone's imagination.

[Wexnident]

Well, I personally hope it would. There's still a lot of stuff that kind of prevents it from developing that way, but there are also developments being made to make it a lot easier to adopt if it does ever start to happen. The current progress seems to be more like the development progress of Bitcoin as well as letting its name out in the world, and its adoption as a payment solution would only happen after maybe a few more decades. Just its high volatility is enough to keep most merchants away from it after all, and it'd only die down once the hype is out and the released supply has pretty much maxed out.

[AniviaBtc]

We are not really in that phase yet where digital money can be used as a payment tool in most of the transactions, but soon, we will.

Hoping that people will see the advantages and importance of bitcoin in our daily lives especially that it has really a value in the market.

There is something more in bitcoin that we should explore not only using it as a store of value because that's not primarily made for that.

[CryptopreneurBrainboss]

It's a gradual process, there's no need to rush. Enjoy whatever the industry offers now which is Bitcoin been an asset (store of value), this was the fastest way the attention it's getting now could have been achieved. As the industry continues evolving, we'll see all the initial idea of Satoshi come into existence.

Like other reply above mine has highlighted, there are solution been worked upon daily to bring about faster transaction and low fees. We have those that careless about the price and more on the technology of Bitcoin so be rest assured, a time will come when you can use your Bitcoin to buy cents of goods and make payment for service without having to overpay.

Already the lightening network is making that possible but with wider adoption and more uses friendly improvement, the issue if high fees will become a thing if the past.

[amishmanish]

For Bitcoin to become a global payment solution, it has to compete with centralized solutions like PayPal, SWIFT etc. In a way, it can never replace those but can create a niche for itself with a new form of payment system for a new economy and a new set of users who are comfortable in their digital lives.

What comes to mind is things like streaming payments and other incentives for engagement and knowledge sharing. The usage of Bitcoin for such things is dependent on these things first getting normalized themselves.

We are already seeing some of these materializing in the form of the trend of NFTs and DAOs that are building around the creative community. Artists, Singers, Video makers are finding new ways to monetize their performances and connect to an audience that puts value on digital representations of arts as well as events. This market is being taken over by NFTs and hence the smart-contracting chains like Ethereum rapidly. In a way, they are the first entrants. Whether Bitcoin can find a foothold in this, is a question that can only be answered with the performance of LN and application built on top of it.

[ice18]

Not until scalability, fees, etc has been resolved like what it says in the comments above if LN will become successful in the near future no doubt this can be achieve 100% but for now lets wait and see blockchain developments are not stopping to discover and develop new solutions to existing problems in btc, Im hoping that in the next 10 years btc will have cheap transaction fees, fast and easy to use.   

[Kittygalore]

Not until scalability, fees, etc has been resolved like what it says in the comments above if LN will become successful in the near future no doubt this can be achieve 100% but for now lets wait and see blockchain developments are not stopping to discover and develop new solutions to existing problems in btc, Im hoping that in the next 10 years btc will have cheap transaction fees, fast and easy to use.   

Lightning network is already successful, it's just that not a lot uses it. Also, I do agree that fees and scalability is a problem but I don't think that bitcoin can cater a global market given that there is a billion of us in this world and there's only little bitcoin for everyone to share.

[leea-1334]

It can and has been used? It is used today still,,, I have been almost ever since on this forum receiving bitcoin as payment for services. Medium of exchange? Did you not even see most of altmarkets is against BTC as the first crypto pair?

It was never a collectible,,, totally disagree there.

[Jawhead999]

It will in the future.

As we can see some online shop is already accepting Bitcoin as the payment, it could bring to the traditional shop/market if Bitcoin has got mass adoption. At least when someone hear a word "Bitcoin", they already know what is Bitcoin and not talking back "What is Bitcoin?". It would be better if they define Bitcoin as a currency, not as a investment asset only.

It was never a collectible,,, totally disagree there.

Bitcoin can be a collectible, but it should in physical form or known as Casascius Physical Bitcoin.

[zanezane]

It will in the future.

As we can see some online shop is already accepting Bitcoin as the payment, it could bring to the traditional shop/market if Bitcoin has got mass adoption. At least when someone hear a word "Bitcoin", they already know what is Bitcoin and not talking back "What is Bitcoin?". It would be better if they define Bitcoin as a currency, not as a investment asset only.

Hopefully this adoption will steadily grow in the future because a lot of negativity are being associated with bitcoin and I am pretty sure that businesses will consider adapting the system if there is something bad that comes with it.

[blockman]

While it can and has been used for payments, its use as a medium of exchange has so far been very limited.

Limited in a manner that not most of the shops are accepting but at least there's a progress from its day 1 up to this date. There are more and more people and merchants that are adopting it and we should look into that point because that's what progress and fundamentals mean. Using it as a medium of exchange is still all over around and we're getting the idea that it's becoming limited due to its value and not everyone wants to spend it. But don't ignore the fact that there are also online services that keeps on rolling out with the use of bitcoin and they're a lot.

It has moved from being a collectible to a store of value. Will it ever move to being a widely adopted medium of exchange and global payment solution?

It will. The use of it for being a store of value and as a medium of exchange coincides and that's not a problem at all.

[hatshepsut93]

There's way too many variables to make any good predictions about it. Bitcoin's volaility is one factor that prevents adoption, and who knows when will it end? Lightning Network is still in development. Companies can still be reluctant to adopt Bitcoin because of unclear regulatory status. General population doesn't see benefits of Bitcoin, because they are satisfied with banks. Any of these factors could change in the future and influence adoption.

[Rikafip]

I don't mind if Bitcoin never reaches true "mass adoption" and am not waiting for it to become the one-world currency. It's already been successful beyond anyone's imagination.

Couldn't agree more. People often think that 10-12 years is very long period of time and that Bitcoin somehow failed because its use didn't reach mass adoption yet, while in reality this is extremely short period of time for something as complex and I think that not even Satoshi thought that Bitcoin will spread as much as it did.

[mr_ROBOTT]

Yes, this will definitely happen. Bitcoin, with its high trading volume and global investment due to rising prices, could be one of the global payment solutions. I do not know when this started, but do not doubt that it happened. It has started and we are in the middle of the road.

[perryxi2]

this doesn't seem very feasible as there are still many countries that have been banning bitcoin as a means of payment. blockchain payment for a payment solution still has many shortcomings and problems yet solvable. I think it will be many years before this becomes a reality

[sapnu]

Bitcoin has been very successful with bitcoin for a long time already regardless of how many struggles and doubts it went through. This just shows how firm bitcoin's foundation is and we could expect the best in the future as it gets more innovated as time passes by. Ways will be provided on how bitcoin can be useful and reliabe for everyone around the world. Even if it wouldn't be legalized or be banned, surely people will still patronize the use of it for the convenience and benefits it gives off to everyone.