Could E-commerce Giant Rakuten Push Amazon to Accept Cryptocurrency Payments?

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With the sheer amount of development taking place in the Cryptocurrency sphere, the next hurdle for this space to overcome would essentially be moving towards mainstream adoption.

Bitcoin has already proven that payments can be transferred peer to peer via Blockchain Technology and the E-commerce giants of this world such as Twitter & Facebook have expressed there enthusiastic views on Cryptocurrency.

Facebook previously stated they were looking at creating their own Facebook coin.

But if we take a minute to look at the current marketcap in Cryptocurrency (around $179 billion), this would instantly tell you that we haven’t even begun to scratch the surface in relation to having crypto as an alternative payment solution on the main scale.

Could Japanese E-commerce giant be a potential catalyst to really drive the price of not just Bitcoin, but even force rival Amazon to start accepting Cryptocurrency?

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What is Rakuten?

Rakuten also referred to, as the Japanese equivalent of Amazon, is a colossal E-commerce marketplace for selling the likes of;

  • Electronics
  • Credit card services
  • Mobile phone services
  • Games
  • Clothes
  • Sporting goods etc..

Rakuten have also held no secret in expressing there objective to start integrating a Cryptocurrency trading service in June this year after receiving a license for its Cryptocurrency exchange from the Japanese financial services regulator.

Users must hold an account with Rakuten Bank to sign-up for the wallet service.

“Customers who have a bank account of Rakuten Group’s “Rakuten Bank” can start opening an account by entering the necessary information on the web application format.”

So how can this push rival Amazon to also consider accepting Cryptocurrencies?

Amazon net sales in 2018 – Can Cryptocurrency take advantage?

Currently, Amazon has resisted in allowing for Cryptocurrency payments as an alternative, quite possibly due to its current volatility. However, if Amazon considers Bitcoin in the future, a huge amount of capital can flood into the Crypto space.

Something the market has been eagerly awaiting for some time now.

Amazon in 2018 recorded a net sale revenue of around 232 billion in 2018 which is currently higher than the entire amount of money in the Cryptocurrency space according to data from Coinmarketcap.

Can you imagine the untouched space this can open to many retail consumers around the world?

Certainly will be a milestone to take note of!

Final Thoughts

Yes, it is evident to see Rakuten is still not to the level of Amazon in terms of worldwide e-commerce brand recognition and revenue, however, the introduction of their Cryptocurrency exchange and trading platform can lead to more competition and other marketplaces considering this option.

Amazon certainly will not want to be the business playing catch-up and I believe they will definitely be keeping an eye on how things are progressing in this space.