Since 2009, the cryptocurrency industry has taken over the financial landscape despite immense volatility at times, with reports suggesting there are over 250,000 Bitcoin (BTC) transactions daily and over one million Ethereum transactions per day. Outside of finance, we are also starting to see cryptocurrency enter the gaming world as more and more gaming operators integrate the technology into their payment systems.
The Gaming Industry Meets The Crypto Sector
Even though there is still a long way to go before cryptocurrency becomes mainstream in gaming, it is clear there is an ongoing transition. While certain large-cap companies like Sony do not accept cryptocurrency as a form of payment, gamers can purchase gaming gift cards with virtual currencies from other reputable gaming businesses like Nintendo and Microsoft. Meanwhile, other well-known gaming platforms like Twitch and Gamesplanet have started to accept Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency payments, allowing users to game straight from their crypto wallet.
The online gambling industry has also started to accept cryptocurrency as a form of payment, adding even more flexibility to an already versatile market. That is especially the case in North America, where platforms like Bodog Casino (part of the online casino Canada with best games market) allow players to deposit and withdraw funds for games like slots, hot drop jackpots, and blackjack using Bitcoin.
Even though online casinos like this one still accept traditional payment methods like Visa and Mastercard, part of the attraction of using cryptocurrencies for online gambling is because virtual currencies like Bitcoin have fast withdrawal speeds (up to 24 hours).
As online gambling deals with real money, or virtual money with real money value, you do not want to wait 3-4 business days for your funds to be withdrawn. The faster, the better; that is an advantage cryptocurrencies have over traditional payment methods.
What Are The Most Popular Cryptocurrencies Available?
Bitcoin is by far the most well-known cryptocurrency due to the attention it gets within the mainstream media, but there are thousands of other digital currencies available, and how popular they are can be determined based on their market capitalization. For example, Bitcoin has a market cap of more than $400 billion, making it the largest virtual currency available, followed by Ethereum, Tether, USD Coin, and Binance Coin. Other virtual currencies, like Dogecoin have increased in popularity despite having a market cap of less than $10 billion following Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s public interest in the virtual currency.
The cryptocurrency industry is here to stay, whether or not people decide to invest in virtual currencies. The proof is in the number of daily transactions that occur, but also industries like gaming welcoming the technology with open arms. We are even starting to see some gaming operators embrace blockchain, the technology responsible for crypto, by offering non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as prizes.
NFTs are also a direct result of blockchain technology. How much more acceptance there will be of cryptocurrency in the gaming sector is unknown, but the industry certainly appears like it is moving in the direction of commercialization.
