Scalability is the biggest hurdle ahead of cryptocurrency mass adoption
The researchers believe mass adoption is only a decade away.
While you’d find plenty of forward-thinking businesses accepting Bitcoin out there, cryptocurrency payments largely remain on the brink of mainstream adoption. But according to new research from Imperial College London and social trading platform eToro, we might not be all that far away from that moment.
In a new report titled Cryptocurrencies: Overcoming Barriers to Trust and Adoption, Imperial College researchers William Knottenbelt and Zeynep Gurguc posit that digital currencies are slated to become a mainstream payment option within the next decade.
The report argues mass adoption is certainly on the horizon given that cryptocurrencies already fulfil one of the three fundamental criteria of traditional fiat money: namely, acting as a store of value.
The remaining two criteria have to do with acting as a medium of exchange (or eliminating the frictions associated with the barter economy) and acting as a legitimate measure of value in the economic system. Still, the research is quick to point out that achieving these latter two goals will require overcoming some challenges in design, scalability, and regulation.
The researchers remark that while new forms of payment have emerged over time, money has persistently retained the same core functions and principles. They further argue that in this sense, cryptocurrencies can offer a viable technological update to the way we spend money – once they fulfil all three fundamental roles of money, that is.
“Given the speed of adoption, we believe that we could see Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies on the high street within the decade,” commented eToro managing director Iqbal Gandham. “There are of course barriers to mainstream adoption, but they are far from insurmountable.”
Indeed, scalability concerns have become a massive roadblock in the path towards mass adoption. The good thing is numerous developers are devising solutions.
Shortly after hit game CryptoKitties brought the Ethereum network to its knees last year, co-founder Vitalik Buterin revealed the foundation is working on scaling solutions. Unfortunately, building and implementing such solutions will take time.
Bitcoin has similarly faced scalability difficulties in the past few months, causing several industry giants like Valve and Stripe to drop Bitcoin payments from their platforms.
Despite these hurdles, Knottenbelt remains convinced of the imminent adoption of virtual currencies.
The researchers believe mass adoption is only a decade away.
While you’d find plenty of forward-thinking businesses accepting Bitcoin out there, cryptocurrency payments largely remain on the brink of mainstream adoption. But according to new research from Imperial College London and social trading platform eToro, we might not be all that far away from that moment.
In a new report titled Cryptocurrencies: Overcoming Barriers to Trust and Adoption, Imperial College researchers William Knottenbelt and Zeynep Gurguc posit that digital currencies are slated to become a mainstream payment option within the next decade.
The report argues mass adoption is certainly on the horizon given that cryptocurrencies already fulfil one of the three fundamental criteria of traditional fiat money: namely, acting as a store of value.
The remaining two criteria have to do with acting as a medium of exchange (or eliminating the frictions associated with the barter economy) and acting as a legitimate measure of value in the economic system. Still, the research is quick to point out that achieving these latter two goals will require overcoming some challenges in design, scalability, and regulation.
The researchers remark that while new forms of payment have emerged over time, money has persistently retained the same core functions and principles. They further argue that in this sense, cryptocurrencies can offer a viable technological update to the way we spend money – once they fulfil all three fundamental roles of money, that is.
“Given the speed of adoption, we believe that we could see Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies on the high street within the decade,” commented eToro managing director Iqbal Gandham. “There are of course barriers to mainstream adoption, but they are far from insurmountable.”
Indeed, scalability concerns have become a massive roadblock in the path towards mass adoption. The good thing is numerous developers are devising solutions.
Shortly after hit game CryptoKitties brought the Ethereum network to its knees last year, co-founder Vitalik Buterin revealed the foundation is working on scaling solutions. Unfortunately, building and implementing such solutions will take time.
Bitcoin has similarly faced scalability difficulties in the past few months, causing several industry giants like Valve and Stripe to drop Bitcoin payments from their platforms.
Despite these hurdles, Knottenbelt remains convinced of the imminent adoption of virtual currencies.