It is no secret more and more service providers are supporting Bitcoin payments, albeit not all of them are advertising it publicly. Worldpay, one of the world’s leading payment networks in the world, seems to have taken a liking to Bitcoin and its underlying blockchain technology. While official Bitcoin integration is not on the agenda just yet, efforts are taking place behind the scenes to best serve merchant clients.
Also read: MoneyGram’s Peter Ohser Feels Bitcoin Technology is “Misguiding” Consumers
Worldpay Does Not Oppose Bitcoin or The Blockchain
Leading payment processors are either openly hostile or openly in favour towards Bitcoin and its underlying blockchain technology. As far as Worldpay is concerned, however, things aren’t necessarily black or white, but more like one of the fifty shades of grey. That being said, this major payment processor is keeping a close eye on the evolution of digital currencies.
Or to be more precise, Worldpay knows some of its clients are working with Bitcoin or the blockchain, although not all of these companies have officially announced their intentions just yet. Worldpay itself is not running any internal projects revolving around cryptocurrency right now, but they are not completely against this idea either.
In fact various Bitcoin startups – including Coinbase and BitPay – are making use of Worldpay payment gateways and have been for quite some time now. Doing so gives both small and large businesses the opportunity to experiment with Bitcoin if they so desire, or simply stick to more traditional payment methods.
Despite an overall neutral stance, Worldpay vice president Chester Ritchie remains wary when expressing his thoughts on Bitcoin as a payment method. There are still many questions to be answered in regards to whether or not this cryptocurrency can have a major impact on the financial system or not. While the supply scarcity can give every individual bitcoin a high value, the problem of hoarding remains a looming threat.
On the other hand, the underlying blockchain technology has proven to be a versatile tool, capable of solving some of the most complex issues plaguing the business world. More and more industry experts are starting to see the potential of blockchain technology outside of the financial sector, as data management or database solutions are becoming critical issues.
In more positive news, Worldpay has been working on implementing Bitcoin as part of its gateway product, called SecureNet. Even though this platform is designed to be a multi-channel commerce product, Mr. Ritchie remained fairly tight lipped on what role Bitcoin will play in the grand scheme of things.
Plenty of Bitcoin and Blockchain Use Cases For Everyone
Regardless of how you want to look at it, Bitcoin and the blockchain will play a key role in the future of our society. How that role will be addressed in an official capacity, is unknown at this point. But with so many companies, developers, and institutions exploring the possibilities, it will only be a matter of time until official announcements are made.
Both Bitcoin and blockchain technology are facing a bit of scrutiny due to their disruptive nature, combined with the fact this is a new field of technological innovation. Applying existing regulatory and legislative frameworks to this disruptive concept is not the way forward unless certain parties want to kill innovation before it can even gain a foothold.
Source: News Tip Via Email (Money20/20)
Images courtesy of Worldpay, Shutterstock
Also published on Medium.
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