04 Feb 2014 / Inman – I was pretty skeptical of Bitcoin originally, watching its value skyrocket and nosedive from one day to the next. But with the digital currency continuing to hog headlines and real estate firms beginning to warm up to it, it’s grown on me.
So last week, I plopped down $806.82 for one bitcoin.
Yes, I’m speculating. I made the purchase because I’ve decided that Bitcoin has so much potential to grow in value that I’m comfortable with potentially losing every penny I’ve spent on it — a real risk given that future regulation could neuter the digital currency.
I think its value has significant upside for three reasons.
First, using Bitcoin instead of dollars offers certain advantages to both consumers and businesses. Businesses don’t have to pay pricey transaction fees to credit card providers if they accept payments in Bitcoin, and consumers can use it to make some purchases more cheaply.
Second, businesses are rapidly adopting Bitcoin. In less than three months, the number of companies accepting Bitcoin has more than tripled to 2,827 on Jan. 29 from 669 establishments, according to Bitcoin Pulse, a service that tracks Bitcoin adoption. Among those businesses are Internet heavyweights Overstock.com, OKCupid, Reddit, and most recently, Zynga…. Read more
http://www.inman.com/2014/02/03/real-estate-is-experimenting-with-bitcoin-and-i-bought-one/
