Back in 2014, Overstock.com made history by becoming one of the first mainstream online retailers to accept Bitcoin. While the total share of purchases made with the cryptocurrency have remained quite small, accepting Bitcoin has made the company a lot more popular in the eyes of cryptocurrency enthusiasts.
According to a recent report by Business Insider, Overstock.com has made the move to begin accepting a wider range of cryptocurrencies besides Bitcoin. This has been made possible by a partnership the company has entered into with ShapeShift, an online service providing instant exchange services between a variety of digital currencies.
Unlike traditional exchange sites, which require users to register an account and manually make trades, ShapeShift’s service simply requires the user to select the currencies they want to exchange, specify a receiving address and send the cryptocoins they want to trade to a provided receiving address. The exchange is done automatically and the user receives the equivalent amount in their chosen cryptocurrency. ShapeShift supports a wide range of digital currencies, including Bitcoin Cash, Etherum, Monero, Zcash, Dogecoin and Dash.
Adding payment options in cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin could mean a unique advantage for Overstock.com, especially at a time where Bitcoin is facing increasing competition from other players in the cryptocurrency world. While Bitcoin still remains the most popular digital currency in the world, its market share has recently dropped to just over 50 percent.
Cryptocurrency acceptance has been growing in the online payments processing industry. However, payment options like Bitcoin still have quite a long way to go before they become mainstream. Out of the 500 most popular online shopping sites in the world, just three accept payments in Bitcoin. Some industry experts believe that this number has the potential to grow in the near future as cryptocurrencies become more popular, especially in parts of the world where few individuals have access to traditional payment methods, such as credit cards and bank accounts.
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