Is Bitcoin already replacing Western Union?

[CTO114]

Nigerians who are recipients of foreign currency prior to this time would either use Western Union or MoneyGram to receive such cash. But this comes with outrageous charges.
Fast forward a lot of Nigerians have started to warm to the idea of receiving via Bitcoin.

Is Bitcoin successfully replacing the once so popular Western Union?

[Tungbulu]

I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve use Bitcoin for international or border transactions, but I don’t think I’ve used western union before.
It’s like choosing to write/send letters from one country to another when you could simply just use your phone to send a WhatsApp message or an email across to them. Bitcoin is indeed way more faster, cheaper and more secure that Western Union, although there are still people using western Union so I wouldn’t say Bitcoin has completely replaced it, but more people are using Bitcoin for borderline transactions now.

[Faazs]

Nigerians who are recipients of foreign currency prior to this time would either use Western Union or MoneyGram to receive such cash. But this comes with outrageous charges.
Fast forward a lot of Nigerians have started to warm to the idea of receiving via Bitcoin.

Is Bitcoin successfully replacing the once so popular Western Union?

Bitcoin is not fully replacing Western Union yet, but it’s on the path to doing so in specific contexts and over time. but Bitcoin (and especially stablecoins, crypto-technologies) are starting to challenge how remittances (i.e. sending money across borders) have traditionally worked, and over time they could reduce reliance on services like Western Union. Though BTC has not replaced western union due to factors like, Volatility & price risk (Bitcoin swings make pure-BTC remittances risky),Off-ramp friction — converting crypto to local cash or bank credit still requires liquidity and trusted services in many places, Regulation & compliance — AML/KYC controls, licensing and FX controls slow crypto remittance scale-up in many corridors, Trust & user behaviour — many recipients prefer cash pick-up or bank deposits from familiar brands. What could signal possible replacement in future include, Crypto/stablecoin flows become the default cheap on-ramp + reliable off-ramp in major corridors (e.g., US→Nigeria, US→Mexico), Big banks / payment providers and regulators build safe rails that make conversion to local currency instant and low cost, Western Union and similar providers lose persistent market share in several large corridors (not just niche corridors). Current evidence shows pockets of displacement but not global replacement.

[Iamgoat]

I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve use Bitcoin for international or border transactions, but I don’t think I’ve used western union before.
It’s like choosing to write/send letters from one country to another when you could simply just use your phone to send a WhatsApp message or an email across to them. Bitcoin is indeed way more faster, cheaper and more secure that Western Union, although there are still people using western Union so I wouldn’t say Bitcoin has completely replaced it, but more people are using Bitcoin for borderline transactions now.

Honestly speaking it is 10 times better to use bitcoin than to use Western Union. Western union and moneygram were the earlier ways you could transfer money to your loved ones or clients overseas. I have only used it twice to receive money from a foreign client I worked for as a ghostwriter. From the side of the recipient, I don’t think there is much challenge only that you will have to go to the bank to be able to claim your funds, provide evidence such as any approved or recognized means of identification to the Western Union agent before your funds are processed and given to you either by cash or transfer to your Naira account. I also remembered then , you have to use a bank that supports the Western Union transactions because it is not all banks partner with them. But in bitcoin transactions, it is an entirely different game, it is what is trending and it’s an evolving technology, you cannot compare the seamless process of bitcoin with western Union. Bitcoin is but far more efficient and effective only for the risk of transferring unreversable funds to a wrong address. I think it is the only aspect I will consider a downside.

[Tungbulu]

I also remembered then , you have to use a bank that supports the Western Union transactions because it is not all banks partner with them. But in bitcoin transactions, it is an entirely different game, it is what is trending and it’s an evolving technology, you cannot compare the seamless process of bitcoin with western Union. Bitcoin is but far more efficient and effective only for the risk of transferring unreversable funds to a wrong address. I think it is the only aspect I will consider a downside.

Lol just imagine the amount of stress one has to go through to receive or send money abroad. Bitcoin is indeed a game changer to both financial institutions/sector and every other sector, even now that it’s not fully accepted and adopted by the government, it’s still doing this much exploit, so now imagine when the government now adopt Bitcoin as a legal tender.

[DubemIfedigbo001]

These two are gradually fading into history. I remember those days when you'll use Western Union and your money takes days to get posted, that's not mentioning how long you'll take and the stressful processes involved in initiating those transactions.

Who doesn't want easier life? We can stay at the comfort of our homes and send Bitcoin or stable coins across to the other person easily as long as we're connected to the Internet. Crypto saves us time and energy and it's even a cheaper alternative to Western Union so it's fast displacing that traditional means of sending funds across countries.

[Africolo]

Nigerians who are recipients of foreign currency prior to this time would either use Western Union or MoneyGram to receive such cash. But this comes with outrageous charges.
Fast forward a lot of Nigerians have started to warm to the idea of receiving via Bitcoin.

Is Bitcoin successfully replacing the once so popular Western Union?

Only those who are into Bitcoin uses it, you can't send Bitcoin to someone who doesn't own a wallet so it still has a long way to go. It can't replace it, Bitcoin is just an alternative and it was created to save this purpose and will remain this way as long as the percentage of Bitcoin adoption is still below 2-7% of the world adoption.

Everyone 18 years old owns a bank account but not every owns a Bitcoin wallet. Wstetem Union, MoneyGram and others traditional mode of payment will always remain the main payment gateway while Bitcoin serves as alternative as it was created for.

[Ever-young]

Nigerians who are recipients of foreign currency prior to this time would either use Western Union or MoneyGram to receive such cash. But this comes with outrageous charges.
Fast forward a lot of Nigerians have started to warm to the idea of receiving via Bitcoin.

Is Bitcoin successfully replacing the once so popular Western Union?

Only those who are into Bitcoin uses it, you can't send Bitcoin to someone who doesn't own a wallet so it still has a long way to go. It can't replace it, Bitcoin is just an alternative and it was created to save this purpose and will remain this way as long as the percentage of Bitcoin adoption is still below 2-7% of the world adoption.

Everyone 18 years old owns a bank account but not every owns a Bitcoin wallet. Wstetem Union, MoneyGram and others traditional mode of payment will always remain the main payment gateway while Bitcoin serves as alternative as it was created for.

Honestly, creating a Bitcoin wallet is way more easier than creating a bank account or any of the accounts listed above. The best part about Bitcoin is that even underaged can own and control a bitcoin wallet by themselves which isn’t the case with the local banks and other financial services.

Yeah not everyone uses Bitcoin, and that’s because it’s still relatively a new technology that’s growing rapidly and in a matter of years, with the current pace of adoption, Bitcoin might actually appear to be more than just an alternative as you say it was initially created to be.

[Bright0515]

Nigerians who are recipients of foreign currency prior to this time would either use Western Union or MoneyGram to receive such cash. But this comes with outrageous charges.
Fast forward a lot of Nigerians have started to warm to the idea of receiving via Bitcoin.

Is Bitcoin successfully replacing the once so popular Western Union?

The goal of crypto currency which is Bitcoin is not developed to replace the traditional banking system. What I understand about this is that people are just using crypto currency to receive money from outside the country because they don't have to go through any process to receive the money. It's just easy as copying your Bitcoin address and sending to who ever is given/sending you money. Bitcoin is not is not taking over the western Union but the western Union is trying to improve in other to compete with Bitcoin which they can not.

[Zigabel]

Nigerians who are recipients of foreign currency prior to this time would either use Western Union or MoneyGram to receive such cash. But this comes with outrageous charges.
Fast forward a lot of Nigerians have started to warm to the idea of receiving via Bitcoin.

Is Bitcoin successfully replacing the once so popular Western Union?

Well there are even many more other platforms that are already replacing this traditional method of receiving money from abroad and also saving cost apart from Bitcoin but Bitcoin has also played a very pivotal role in this reform seeing that it comes with much more flexibility and the fact that it cannot be completely controlled by any one alone also has given it the edge that many others do not have and the speed and reliability that comes with sending money through Bitcoin has also led to its adoption by many others as a means to send money across the globe, although theses other old methods still have their use as some person still use them even till this time but mostly many persons has migrated to the usage of Bitcoin for convenience.

[Versatile_choice]

I can't remember making transfer or receiving money via western union, all my transactions was through bitcoin. And the reason why I prefer using bitcoin to transact with friends who are outside the country is because the charge is less compared to western union, but in terms of chosing the one that is more reliable among the both. I think western union is more reliable than bitcoin because I can remembered transacting with a friend but i didn't receive the payment so I ask him to go tell the Bank to make a refund and it works. Which I don't know what would have happened if I had use bitcoin to make that transaction.

[WhoYouCantKill]

Partly, yes. Bitcoin is turning a better option to Western Union as it is faster, cheaper, and won't need a middleman or high fees for transfer. So many Nigerians presently choose it for cross-border transactions since it provides better control and don't have exchange rate problems. Nevertheless, it has not entirely taken over the place of Western Union yet, which is because everyone is not fully acquainted with crypto or even comfortable while using it. Though the move is taking place clearly and gradually.

[Tungbulu]

I can't remember making transfer or receiving money via western union, all my transactions was through bitcoin. And the reason why I prefer using bitcoin to transact with friends who are outside the country is because the charge is less compared to western union, but in terms of chosing the one that is more reliable among the both. I think western union is more reliable than bitcoin because I can remembered transacting with a friend but i didn't receive the payment so I ask him to go tell the Bank to make a refund and it works. Which I don't know what would have happened if I had use bitcoin to make that transaction.

The only way you’d transact via bitcoin and not receive it is if/when you send to a wrong wallet, which is most unlikely to happen, same thing with the banks, if you send to a wrong account details, it might still be impossible to get a refund even if you visit the bank a million times. The reason you probably didn’t receive the money is due to bank’s network, which doesn’t happen with Bitcoin, even when there’s a congestion on the memepool, the transaction will only be delayed, but you’ll certainly get the money as long as you’re sure that the wallet is the right one. What you experienced is just like the banks creating a problem and then solving it for you just to appear reliable to you mate. With Bitcoin, you won’t even have to experience such an inconvenience in the first place.

[Coyster]

Bitcoin make sense well well for cross-border trade and transactions. Low fees and fast. That said, the both parties have to agree to use bitcoin, for example, i might want to send money to the United States, but the recipient has never used bitcoin or any crypto and it is impossible to convince the receiver to accept bitcoin.

Crypto has made cross-border transactions very easy. People get hired online from any part of the world and they get paid in crypto, smooth and easy, all you need is a wallet address. Bitcoin and crypto make sense well well, na mass adoption remain.

[casey15]

I think for a period of time now, western union has not really been so popular as it used to be because there are new options made available... I think since the emergence and adoption of USDT and exchanges, intercontinental transfer has been easier... Then some fintech apps came too that provides foreign account numbers to receive funds... While funds may not be sent in Bitcoin directly, it is no doubt the pioneer of the new ways available

[Odogwu-Blockchain]

Is Bitcoin successfully replacing the once so popular Western Union?

Yes, it's insane to be paying fee of $14 for a transaction of $1000 upwards, it's too high, no one would love to keep paying this.

That's why Nigerian bank are restricting crypto to be interconnecting with bank because many customers will know the tricks.

Most people that uses western union, money gram method of payment are older people and they are still looking at Bitcoin to be a scam thing, so it's difficult for them to start using Bitcoin as payment internationally, that's another problem.

[ColdLava40]

Nigerians who are recipients of foreign currency prior to this time would either use Western Union or MoneyGram to receive such cash. But this comes with outrageous charges.
Fast forward a lot of Nigerians have started to warm to the idea of receiving via Bitcoin.

Is Bitcoin successfully replacing the once so popular Western Union?

Western Union used to be very common then for cross border transactions. Honestly I still see people making use of it in banks and I know very well that if the were aware of Bitcoin, they will definitely stop using the old method to send.

Bitcoin is much faster and you don't have to pay too much for fee. What I think is that majority of people still using the western union aren't much familiar with cryptocurrency and you know how people are scared of what they don't know about.

[Padi24]

Western Union used to be very common then for cross border transactions. Honestly I still see people making use of it in banks and I know very well that if the were aware of Bitcoin, they will definitely stop using the old method to send.

Bitcoin is much faster and you don't have to pay too much for fee. What I think is that majority of people still using the western union aren't much familiar with cryptocurrency and you know how people are scared of what they don't know about.

Western union is the most recommendable means of making transaction right from the onset, and the more reason why people will still choose western union over bitcoin is due to the fact that alot of people are not familiar with bitcoin. As they will be worried about converting it to fiat, you know not everyone that knows how to make P2P trade. if not for this reason I'm sure that almost everyone would have switch to using bitcoin to  transact with people who are outside the country, But since they're not used to P2P trading they have decided to adopt the western union regardless the higher fee they charge for each transaction, but I believe with time alot of people will leave western union for bitcoin that's after they must have learn how P2P trade works as alot of people have started looking into it.

[Africolo]

Nigerians who are recipients of foreign currency prior to this time would either use Western Union or MoneyGram to receive such cash. But this comes with outrageous charges.
Fast forward a lot of Nigerians have started to warm to the idea of receiving via Bitcoin.

Is Bitcoin successfully replacing the once so popular Western Union?

Western Union used to be very common then for cross border transactions. Honestly I still see people making use of it in banks and I know very well that if the were aware of Bitcoin, they will definitely stop using the old method to send.

Bitcoin is much faster and you don't have to pay too much for fee. What I think is that majority of people still using the western union aren't much familiar with cryptocurrency and you know how people are scared of what they don't know about.

It's a gradual process or were you expecting a digital money to just flush out our traditional money and mode of transactions just like that ? Bitcoin adoption will continue to increase but will never replace the traditional way of banking that everyone are used it.

Bitcoin was created for micro payment and an alternative to traditional ways of making transactions, no time did Satoshi said it was going to completely replace our traditional mode of payment.

[LOVER BOY 422]

Bitcoin and others crypto hold the potential to disrupt traditional financial services like western Union, several factors have prevented Bitcoin from completely overtaking the remittance giant.
1. Volatility
2. Complexity and user friendly
3.Transaction fees and fast
4. Accessibility and infrastructure
5.Regulatory uncertainty
6. On -ramps and off -ramps
7. Trust and brand recognition.