Blockonomics: A Decentralized Bitcoin Alternative to Stripe

With the recent news of Stripe removing Bitcoin as a payment option, customers and merchants in the cryptocurrency space have expressed disapproval over the decision.

Stripe, who first started accepting Bitcoin in 2014 when it had reached $1,000 per coin, announced it will end support for Bitcoin on April 23rd. Their reasoning was direct: Bitcoin’s volatile fluctuations, long transaction times, and expensive mining fees. They have, however, begun considering other cryptocurrency options such as Stellar, Litecoin, Ethereum, Lightning, Bitcoin Cash, and OmiseGO.

As one of the largest payment processors takes a step down from Bitcoin, the use case of Bitcoin as a payment option for e-commerce hasn’t slowed down. Bitcoin still remains the top dog in the cryptocurrency world for many reasons. Blockchain allows lower payment processing fees than PayPal and credit card companies – as much as 66% cheaper. It also completely eliminates chargebacks, which is a major concern for many retailers. The chance for fraud is also completely minimized, and there’s always a potential for increased capital gain if and when Bitcoin goes up in value.

Bitcoin has also since normalized. As of late, the average cost of a Bitcoin transaction is cheaper than it’s been in a year and a half. With more wallets and exchanges moving towards Segwit compatibility, the cost per transaction has been greatly reduced. Plus, the upcoming Lightning Network will make transactions much more faster than they currently are.

One example of a Stripe alternative is Blockonomics – one of the only Bitcoin payment processors that hold true to the purpose of Bitcoin.

Blockonomics transaction fees are 1% for unlimited transactions, with the first 10 transactions free of charge. They’re also one of the first to become Segwit compatible, along with their wallet watching service. While Bitcoin is accepted natively as their payment option of choice, customers of merchants can still choose to pay using any cryptocurrency offered by Shapeshift.

However, what makes Blockonomics unique over the dozens of other choices for Bitcoin payments is their slogan, “Be Your Own Bank”. E-commerce store owners that receive Bitcoin for purchases can have it sent to their own personal wallet. Most cryptocurrency payment processors hold your coins in their own, centralized wallet. Blockonomics stays true to the roots of Bitcoin by allowing merchants to be their own bank as the one of the only decentralized Bitcoin payment processors.

While Stripe returns to the drawing board, the use of Bitcoin for e-commerce payments won’t miss a beat. Blockonomics, along with many other Stripe alternatives, are more than willing to steal a piece of the crypto-pie.