Coupofy.com, a leading database of online coupon codes, has observed the trend first-hand while updating the information of their extensive list of internet merchants. From department store Neiman Marcus and clothing outlet Urban Outfitters, to the Expedia travel booking service and computer hardware giant Newegg, everybody is jumping on the Bitcoin bandwagon and there's no sign of it slowing down.
According to data from 2014, around 100,000 merchants are now accepting Bitcoins alongside more traditional payment options such as credit cards or Paypal. Unsurprisingly it's the tech savvy and consumerist United States leading the charge, with the UK, Canada, Germany, and The Netherlands not far behind. However as the technology becomes more accessible and the apps and software become easier to use, it has the potential to revolutionize global commerce, particularly in restrictive economies or countries where the financial system is failing at the central level. With no
single entity in control, we could be about to see the birth of a truly global medium of exchange. Emerging countries such as Brazil have seen a staggering 406% signup growth from Q4 2014 to Q1 2015.
Data obtained by Coupofy from BitPay reveals that the leading Bitcoin payment processor dealt with the equivalent value of $158,800,000 in Bitcoin transactions in 2014, an increase from 2013's figure of $107,575,000. This represents 563,568 in total individual transactions, compared to 209,420 the prior year. Perhaps what's most interesting about this
data is that not only are the number of transactions going up but the average order value is going down. This suggests that individuals are increasingly using Bitcoin to pay for everyday products, rather than buying the cryptocurrency in bulk as an investment. The number one purchased item from Overstock.com using Bitcoins is bed sheets!
Even more startling is that if these BitPay transactions had been processed via credit card (using a standard 3%
transaction fee) $7,991,250 would have vanished in to the coffers of today's controlling financial institutions. Unless these dinosaurs can compete with Bitcoin's level of efficiency, they might just go extinct.