Circle Enables NFC Bitcoin Payments

2014 has been a rocky year for bitcoin. However, despite a host of criticisms that include a lack of accessibility for the average consumer, a lack of consumer protection, and a general inclination towards volatility, bitcoin has seen more acceptances among merchants, and an increase in efforts towards solving some of these issues.

One Boston-based company aims to make digital currencies more accessible and has spearheaded efforts to bring many of the same protections that financial institutions provide for dollars to digital currency users.

To the point of usability, Circle is riding the uptick in consumer awareness about mobile payments (thanks to Apple Pay), and is enabling NFC payments on its Android app.

With the release of Apple Pay, merchant interest in adopting NFC-enabled point of sale systems has grown, especially with the upcoming EMV update in October.

While still relatively niche, NFC in the United States is steadily materializing as a viable way to pay.

Thanks to efforts from leading exchange and bitcoin payment processors Coinbase and BitPay, the number of businesses accepting bitcoin is steadily climbing, with some recent big name additions being Expedia and Microsoft.

Merchants who are equipped with NFC-enabled point of sale systems and an inkling towards getting on the bitcoin bandwagon may see some phone-taps in the near future.

It’s interesting then that bitcoin and digital currencies at large face the same chicken or the egg problem that payments companies must solve regarding merchant acceptance and consumer adoption, and carrying out the right strategies to reach both.

Of course, digital currencies and their proponents must also contend with the shaky state of regulation, the volatility problem, and its association with illicit activities, all issues that may put a damper on the rise of bitcoin in 2015.