Accepting Crypto as a Business or Non-Profit

Cryptocurrencies are gaining more ground and penetrating every sector as a form of digital payment. According to research, 53% of Americans believe that crypto is the future of modern banking and finance. And because of this, more business owners are asking themselves how they can start accepting crypto as a form of payment.

While many corporations embrace this digital currency as a legal tender, others are skeptical about adopting it. Crypto is hugely decentralized and volatile, so therefore, many businesses are unsure of the legitimacy of the currencies. Beyond that, enthusiasts are using it as a part of their short and long-term investment strategies. Many believe that cryptocurrencies are here to stay. Therefore businesses should be looking at how they can either be engaged in the metaverse (Web 3.0) or accept cryptocurrencies for their services.

At Expense To Profit, we present businesses with forward-thinking strategies to keep your organizations ahead of the curve. In a previous article, we explore how to prepare your business for the metaverse strategically. 

Should your business or non-profit organization accept payments and donations in crypto? We discuss everything you need to know about crypto right here.

What Are Cryptocurrencies?

Cryptocurrency (or crypto) is a form of legal tender that happens on a decentralized platform. What this means is that there is no central bank regulation. However, digital currency is somewhat backed by certain sovereign entities, including the US, the EU, Japan, Canada, and Australia. 

Transactions with crypto depend on the peer-to-peer (P2P) blockchain encrypted technology that confirms each payment and registers it on their public ledger. If you are looking for an alternative way to conduct financial transactions, then crypto is the way.

Benefits of Accepting Crypto as a Business or Non-Profit

There are several benefits to accepting crypto payments and donations for your business or non-profit organization. These include:

Lower Transaction Fees

One of the easily noticeable advantages of accepting payments in crypto is that you will not have to deal with exorbitant transaction fees. This is because there is no ‘middle man’ between transactions regarding crypto. 

Traditional banking systems with credit cards incur up to 25 cents for each card swipe, resulting in almost 4% of each transaction. Accepting crypto payments can reduce these costs dramatically to less than 1%, but you would need to have the right processes in place. 

Access to New Demographic

When you establish crypto payments and donations to your business or non-profit, your venture will be strategically positioned to attract a new demographic of customers and donors. 

According to a recent study, 40% of customers who pay with crypto are new to a business. Their purchase amount is twice as much as those who use credit cards.

Improve Sales and Donations

Crypto is a digital currency that can be seamlessly used and transmitted worldwide. Therefore, accepting crypto payments and donations opens up a window of global patronage. The availability of crypto payments due to their decentralized manner outweighs the limitations of fiat currencies. 

More Convenience

Crypto payments offer more comfort and safety for clients and donors. Due to its safe structure, users can rest assured of their digital safety. 

Better Alternative

Crypto payments are typically faster than traditional transactions and are a foolproof way to balance assets to cash. As inflation rates currently increase, fiat currencies gradually lose value. However, beyond the current volatility of crypto, it is ripe for long-term investment, especially as it becomes increasingly mainstream.

How to Accept Crypto Payments for Your Business or Non-Profit

We have addressed cryptos and their benefits as a transaction medium for your business or non-profit. So, how, as a business or non-profit, do you set up payments and donations in crypto?

Understand Crypto Payments

Crypto is a decentralized currency not regulated by any financial institution or central bank. Transactions are done on a peer-to-peer network and transferred from one digital wallet to another.

Crypto transactions are different from the traditional transactions that involve the sender and recipient banks and the card networks.

Set up a Crypto Wallet for Your Business or Non-Profit

Once you understand how crypto transactions work, you need to set up a crypto wallet or gateway. 

Some of the popular solutions include: 

• Flexa. This innovative platform integrates your payment architecture to accept digital payments for your business automatically. Flexa provides your customers with a wide range of digital currency options for payments. You get reimbursement from the platform according to your schedule and in whatever digital or fiat currency you choose. Find out more here.
• The Giving Back. This is a platform that integrates non-profits to receive crypto donations seamlessly. The Giving Back hosts hundreds of non-profits across different sections accepting donations in crypto. Get started here.

Other digital wallets include Trust Wallet, Binance, MetaMask, and other crypto marketplaces. 

Integrate Crypto Payments

After setting up your crypto wallet, the next thing is to set it up as a payment option during checkout or at your donations page. Using e-platforms like Flexa and The Giving Back can give you the flexibility to integrate them into your website. Otherwise, you will have to do with an open-source API such as BitPay, CoinPayments, or Coinbase Commerce.

Offer In-Person Crypto Payments

Apart from integrating crypto payments and donations to your websites, you need to offer in-person crypto payments. You should consider including a QR code scanner compatible with the crypto transfer. 

If your business has a mobile POS system, you may be able to integrate crypto payments if the interface allows it.  If your system does not, you may want to consider the other available options.

Conclusion

Ensuring your business or non-profit is in tune with the times and open to crypto payments and donations is an excellent decision. Plug your organization into the digital world and take full advantage of it. Many of our partners are already using or are in the early research stages of integrating crypto payments 

Expense To Profit is a leading expense reduction firm dedicated to providing insights, recommendations, and strategies to reduce your expenses while boosting your revenue. You can reach out to us to better understand your business needs and goals and design strategies to help you.