If you have been watching bitcoin and the other cryptocurrencies over the past several weeks, you know that prices have been experiencing some major swings. While this is certainly not unheard of in the world of cryptocurrency, it is helping to generate a lot of interest in this type of asset. With prices ranging from a new all time high of over $68,000 and then dipping back down to the mid $50k range for bitcoin, it is easy to see why so many people are talking about it.
On top of that, there have been some big moves in other areas of the crypto world. For example, one of the most recognized arenas in the world, the Staples Center in Los Angeles, has been rebranded as the Crypto.com Arena.
Starting on December 25th, 2021 and for the next 20-years, anytime someone watches the LA Lakers, the LA Rams, the LA Chargers, the LA Kings, or the LA Sparks, viewers will be flooded with the crypto.com branding. This has helped to drive the price of their CRO token up well over 200%.
These are just a couple examples of the amazing volatility that the crypto markets are currently experiencing. When you look at some of the less popular options, you can see swings of several hundred percent in price in a single day.
This has gotten many businesses wondering about how they can get involved with crypto to try to boost their revenue. Fortunately, there are a variety of different opportunities for business owners who want to get involved in the crypto economy.
Start Accepting Payments in Crypto
The most obvious option for most businesses that want to get involved with blockchain technology is to begin accepting payments in one or more cryptocurrencies. You can either accept direct payments that you manage, or sign up for one of the many different services that allow you to accept crypto payments quickly and easily.
NewEgg, for example, accepts a variety of different cryptocurrencies including bitcoin, Litecoin, dogecoin, Ethereum, and more. If you start accepting payments in crypto you will have to decide whether you want to hold on to them as crypto or convert them immediately into dollars (or whatever local currency you prefer).
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Consider Mining Bitcoin or Other Cryptocurrencies
Many businesses find that they have some extra space in their facility and access to inexpensive electricity. If you are in this position, you may want to consider setting up mining operations for cryptocurrency. There are several different types of mining available in the crypto space so you can pick the ones that will work best for your situation. Some options are:
- Bitcoin Mining – Modern bitcoin mining is done with specialized mining machines known as ASIC miners. Once plugged in and configured, they run 24/7 attempting to ‘mine’ the next block on the bitcoin blockchain. You can either attempt to mine on your own to get all of the rewards if you find a block, or join a pool of other miners and split the rewards. Pools allow you to mine a much more predictable amount of bitcoin each day.
- GPU Mining – There are quite a few different cryptocurrencies that you can mine using graphics cards. This can be done on an individual GPU in a computer, or using multiple GPUs installed together on a dedicated mining machine. You can mine Ethereum, Ravencoin, and many others using this method.
- Proof of Stake Mining – Many cryptocurrencies use a mining method known as proof of stake, or PoS. With this method, you just need to buy and hold on to a set amount of their coin or token to earn more. It functions similarly to interest at a bank in many ways. The Ethereum 2.0, which may be launching in 2022, will be the largest project to use this system.
- Helium Mining – The Helium mining project is used to create a large network of wireless connectivity points that are used by Internet of Things (IoT) devices. If you install a Helium mining device, you can earn their HNT tokens, which are worth just over $40 as of this writing.
- Other Options – Most cryptocurrencies are able to be mined in one way or another. Some will require you to invest money into the equipment up front, others will have larger electricity requirements, and others have very few requirements at all.
If mining cryptocurrency is something your business may be interested in, it is well-worth taking the time to learn about how each option works. You may find one that fits perfectly into your overall business strategy.
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Switch to the Crypto-Friendly Brave Browser
If you want a risk-free way to acquire a little bit of crypto, consider moving away from Chrome (or whatever browser your business uses) and installing the Brave browser. Brave is based on the Chromium framework, so it works really well on virtually all websites, but it is made with a built in ad blocker and other tools to help protect your privacy. This allows it to load websites significantly faster than other popular browsers.
They also have an optional feature where you can opt in to viewing an occasional advertisement while browsing the web and you will earn basic attention tokens (generally called BAT). BAT are the cryptocurrency used within the Brave browser and as of today are worth around $1.50 each (up from well under $1 just a couple months ago).
You can either keep the BAT you earn or use them to donate to content creators online. They have created a great ecosystem involving content creators, users of the browser, and major companies that want to run ads. With over 42 million users, this is one of the fastest growing browsers available today.
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Understand Your Risk
While everyone loves it when they see their crypto holdings shoot up by huge amounts in a short period of time, it would be foolish to ignore the fact that things can drop down just ask quickly. While some assets such as bitcoin seem like they will be around long into the future, some of the lower market cap options could become entirely worthless very quickly.
If you want to have some exposure to the crypto market for your business, make sure you look closely at the potential risk that is involved. Making decisions that will allow you to benefit from the positives of crypto while still protecting you from the risks will help ensure you are positioned well for whatever the future brings.
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