Figure 1 Bitcoin has been at the forefront of the crypto revolution
It doesn’t seem that long ago that anyone interested in cryptocurrencies was thought to be outside the mainstream. In fact, much of what attracted many towards developing and using digital currency was the feeling that there was another way to develop financial transactions.
But in the last few years, there has been a definite shift towards crypto becoming an everyday thing – for everyday people. There are crypto ATMs, bitcoin betting and mass media reports spending hours upon hours on the latest news concerning digital markets. That last factor alone shows that the mainstream is taking notice of cryptocurrency. But how else has it become part of general society?
Digital Payments
This factor can be broken into two distinct parts. First of all, there has been acceptance from businesses to take cryptocurrency as payment. The shift away from face-to-face transactions and a more digital world in the last few years has definitely played its part in the greater adoption of this.
But there has also been the introduction of employee payments, as in their compensation. This is probably a more important point. Because if people are willing to be paid in crypto, it shows that there is more trust. The fact that crypto can be easily converted into local currencies makes this even more popular.
Offering of Equity
So we have everyday people being paid in cryptocurrency. But the next level of that is the offering of equity. This is part of the more long-term business strategy of offering shares or profit in the form of digital currency. This is also a good move for the businesses involved.
The offering of equity in this way begins a relationship that can only get stronger. There are also no flotation costs, so the financial advantages for the business is obvious. When high-profile sports stars are happy to take payment this way, a lot more people tend to take notice.
The Rise of NFTs
NFTs have been one of the highest-profile aspects of the digital world in the last few years. But it is fair to say that there has been a backlash from those who either don’t really understand what they are, or seem angry that other people are quite happy investing in them.
The communities that have grown around NFTs show that there is huge interest in this way of investing and model of ownership. After making the headlines, NFT investing has settled down, but in a more mainstream manner. The way this kind of interaction develops will be very interesting, to say the least.
Figure 2 NFT art has definitely gone mainstream – but confused many traditionalists
Investor Trust
One surefire way of telling that something has gone mainstream is that investors are willing to accept cryptocurrencies. There is some evidence that there is more trust away from the more traditional financial centers, but that is only natural when you have something that has been developed away from the centralized organizations.
There is, of course, a danger that this acceptance is because there is less trust in the traditional currencies in these parts of the world. But, if more and more regions start looking to invest in digital currencies, the ability to move into the mainstream becomes even more inevitable.
What About Regulation?
The problem with blockchain technology, cryptocurrencies, and decentralized organizations is that it doesn’t sit very well with the traditional way of doing things – and that is the definition of the mainstream. So how can these seemingly opposing views on how to run the world work together?
The answer is probably more regulation. This will be needed if digital currency is to grow even bigger. Trust levels can only go so far without greater regulation and that could mean everything coming to a head soon. But there doesn’t seem to be anything that will reverse the acceptance of crypto, so it looks like there will be a way for it to truly become a part of the mainstream.