For the past 14 years, digital currencies have divided many opinions, with enterprises and investors showing different risk appetites regarding cryptocurrencies. Following the November 2021 price explosions in the crypto market when the total market cap upped $3 trillion –and Bitcoin hit an all-time high of $69,000 – everyone became interested in this new “money” – even governments.
Despite the rapid adoption rates that crypto and blockchain have witnessed in the past decade, data from Blockware Intelligence suggests more needs be done in the space. According to the report, Bitcoin is expected to hit a global adoption rate of 10% by 2030. Although this represents a healthy figure of close to 800 million people, it still represents only a fraction of people who would benefit from the wonders of this innovation.
This raises the question of what enthusiasts must do to unlock mass crypto adoption. Binance exchange, the world’s largest crypto exchange in trading volume, has been one of the biggest players in pushing for global crypto adoption, removing the barriers of entry for millions of people. Below we look at some problems that prevent global crypto adoption and how Binance works to solve each problem.
How can crypto platforms boost global crypto adoption?
The cryptocurrency market is still at its adolescent stage, and adoption problems in adoption are to be expected. Issues ranging from regulatory uncertainty to a lack of understanding of how the technology works, from security risks to scalability problems – all these issues are expected in a young industry. However, there are nascent issues that are crippling the mass adoption of crypto.
1. Education barriers
One of the biggest issues in crypto is the lack of proper education. For people unfamiliar with Web 3, words such as DeFi, immutable, DAO, Vault, Mint, Wallet, Burning Tokens, and Tokenomics could sound like a foreign language. This makes it impossible to introduce the technology to the common folk without prior knowledge.
Luckily, platforms such as Binance are launching education programs to help bridge this gap. Via programs such as the Binance Academy, Learn & Earn, and Binance Research, novices can simply learn about blockchain, helping them in their first steps in the blockchain world.
2. Regulatory barriers
Secondly and more importantly, regulation uncertainty around the field makes it difficult for new users to adopt cryptocurrencies. Recently, the SEC charged Binance and Coinbase for offering digital assets as “securities”, which caused a huge exodus of funds from the two platforms. While critics are quick to poke at regulation as a downside to what crypto stands for, the counterargument suggests that rules are crucial to further legitimizing cryptocurrencies and increasing global adoption on a wide scale. Setting and implementing rules on crypto could be the key to ensuring trust and safe usage of the space, which could entice more people to join the industry.
Over the past five years, Binance has worked with lawmakers worldwide to gain regulatory licenses across different jurisdictions. The exchange currently holds a regulatory licence in Italy, France, Spain, Poland, Cyprus, Sweden, and Lithuania.
3. User-experience in crypto
The cryptocurrency industry is confusing, especially to new users. Getting a wallet, storing crypto, and using them can be complex for many people. Decentralized protocols can be even more complex to use and understand – fees, gas fees, and staking – leading to a barrier to adoption. Moreover, for those who have made it past the initial confusion, many exchanges and wallets still offer limited or poor user experience. Often this pushes potential market participants from using crypto altogether.
To solve the complexity, Binance provides a user-friendly UX/UI platform that makes it easy for users to create an account and wallets and start using crypto seamlessly. Users can simply open an account and a host of crypto wallets using their Apple ID or Google accounts, gain knowledge on trading futures or options, and transfer crypto to different wallets. Earlier this year, Binance introduced its Tax Tool, a free tax assistant for anyone who needs to prepare their crypto taxes.
4. Financial compatibility
Compared to traditional finance systems, crypto still lags miles behind in usability. Digital currencies lack universal use cases like their fiat counterparts, which makes extending their capabilities difficult and hinders mass adoption. Additionally, many cryptocurrencies have little use outside of their network or trading. To overcome this gap in the market, crypto platforms have been actively looking for solutions to integrate crypto into the traditional finance infrastructure.
In 2018, Binance launched the Binance Card, in collaboration with VISA and MasterCard, to allow users to spend their cryptocurrencies at any of the 100 million+ merchant stores accepting the latter two modes of payment. In addition, the exchange also launched Binance Pay, a contactless, borderless and secure cryptocurrency payment technology that allows users to shop with crypto or send crypto to friends and family worldwide.
Finally, Binance also provides financial compatibility features such as loans, investments, and earning features that allow users to save, borrow and lend crypto, similar to traditional financial systems.
5. Partnerships and communities
As the saying goes, “United we stand, divided we fall”. To enhance global crypto adoption, crypto platforms should look to collaborate within and without the crypto industry. By creating strong partnerships, crypto platforms can leverage existing networks, share resources, and build synergies. This can effectively introduce crypto to new audiences.
Additionally, once new users join, it is important to keep them active in the space. Binance ensures this by creating a strong community via its Binance Community programs, which have already been hosted in over 100+ cities worldwide. Secondly, the exchange also hosts conferences such as ‘Bitcoin Pizza Day’, which helps the community to interact and share knowledge in the blockchain space. Finally, Binance also launched its Rewards program that brings in new users by enticing and rewarding them with crypto.
Final words
In conclusion, the future of crypto mass adoption holds great promise, but several challenges need to be addressed. Education barriers, regulatory uncertainties, user-experience complexities, financial compatibility gaps, and the need for strong partnerships and communities all play significant roles in shaping the adoption landscape.
Crypto platforms like Binance are actively working to solve these issues by offering education programs, engaging with regulators, providing user-friendly interfaces, integrating crypto into traditional finance, and fostering partnerships and communities. As these efforts continue, the path towards widespread adoption becomes clearer, offering the potential to revolutionize the way we transact and engage with digital currencies on a global scale.
Disclaimer: The content on this site should not be considered investment advice. Investing is speculative. When investing, your capital is at risk.
Anais
Catherine
Miyuki
Alex
Joy