Nick Szabo Was Wrong: With Bitcoin, Micropayments Work

It’s the classic question that has been debated in tech circles for years: Do micropayments work? On one side, is legendary computer scientist Nick Szabo, who declared that “bitcoin micropayments are doomed”. On the other side, you have the cryptocurrency faithful, who say that Bitcoin is the only technology that can allow for micropayments to come to fruition.

Let me tell you folks, it’s been a long time coming, but Szabo was wrong! It is indeed possible to make micropayments with bitcoin, and the effects of it could revolutionize the way we think about buying and selling goods and services. Here are just a few ways Bitcoin is making it possible to make the seemingly impossible happen:

Smallest Unit of Payment

Bitcoin comes with a smallest unit of payment, which is called the satoshi. This allows users to send tiny payments, as small as 0.00000001 BTC (which is equivalent to about 0.0003 US dollars). This makes it possible to transact for prices as small as one cent or even one thousandth of a cent, depending on the exchange rate.

Lower Fees

Bitcoin also allows for lower fees than traditional payment processors. This makes it possible to pay small amounts without wasting money on processing fees that can eat away at your profits. Since bitcoin transactions are approved and processed by computers and not by people, the processing fees can remain low, even when micropayments are involved.

No Minimums

Most payment processors require that merchants set minimum purchase amounts in order to process transactions. This means that customers are unable to make smaller purchases without incurring an additional fee. With bitcoin, there are no minimums, so users can make as small of a payment as they like without incurring any additional charges.

Speed of Transactions

Finally, Bitcoin allows for instantaneous transactions. This means that users can send small sums of money quickly and easily, without having to wait for days or weeks for their transactions to go through. As a result, Bitcoin micropayments are much more convenient than traditional ones.

As you can see, Nick Szabo was wrong: With Bitcoin, micropayments do work. So next time you’re considering buying something for just a few cents, consider using Bitcoin to make the transaction. You’ll be glad you did!