Bitcoin has been soaring to new heights, and now folks on Change.org are calling on e-commerce juggernaut Amazon to accept the cryptocurrency as payment 'ASAP.'Since March 23, bitcoin has increased 159%, from a little over $1,000 to $2,700.At least 2,100 petitioners on Change.org want Amazon to join companies such as Microsoft and Overstock in accepting bitcoin as a form of payment. They also want the company to accept litecoin, another cryptocurrency.The petition cites the following reasons as to why it would be a good idea for Amazon to accept the two cryptocurrencies:'Low transaction costs'Decentralized currency'Low Inflation (Because of the finite supply of Bitcoins (this mostly benefits the consumer)'Bitcoin is accessible to any person of any age, sex, demographic, etc. (it is extremely advantageous to citizens of crisis countries)'Non-reversible payments (Extremely beneficial to reputable companies such as Amazon.com)'Bitcoins are extremely secure (Bitcoins reside in an encrypted format on the wallet they are kept in)'But Amazon might be skeptical about bitcoin, and for good reason. For starters, cryptocurrencies are known for their constant fluctuations in price. Ethereum, another cryptocurrency, flash crashed on Wednesday. It tumbled from about $296 to a low of $13 in a matter of minutes.Many people think a price correction is on the horizon for bitcoin. Mark Cuban, the billionaire investor, took to twitter on June 6 to say he thought there is a bitcoin 'bubble.' Tweet Embed:https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/872115728962510849I think it's in a bubble. I just don't know when or how much it corrects. When everyone is bragging about how easy they are making $=bubble https://t.co/hTrV5DeWNdAdditionally, some don't view bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as viable. Morgan Stanley, for instance, recently said that merchants don't think cryptocurrencies have a bright future. Here's Morgan Stanley:Most regulators and investors view cryptocurrencies more as assets than actual currencies. Their values are too volatile and too hard to actually use for payment for most to consider them currencies. Our conversations with some merchants indicate that, while cryptocurrencies might actually be attractive for them to operate their businesses, they find that the cryptocurrencies are far too volatile to be used. Other obstacles to bitcoin's future, according to the bank, include the Chinese crackdown on mining bitcoin and declining trading volumes. ![Stock Stock](/uploads/1/2/5/6/125602846/883312790.png)
Amazon Sees Bitcoin Use Case in Data Marketplaces. It was granted to Amazon Technologies, a subsidiary of the e-commerce and cloud computing giant, on Tuesday. Adding on to that base, the filing says, developers could 'build real-time dashboards, capture exceptions and generate alerts, drive recommendations, and make other real-time business or operational decisions.' While we wait for stores like Amazon and BestBuy to accept bitcoin directly, some enterprising folks have found a workaround. Use bitcoin to purchase gift cards from services like eGifter, or Gyft and then redeem them at Amazon, BestBuy, and hundreds of other popular retailers.
Of all of the mainstream companies, Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) has perhaps seen the most speculation about its potential foray into the cryptocurrency space. In the past, rumors have swirled, particularly when news becomes available indicating that the e-commerce giant bought up digital currency-related domain names. It's possible that the reason for all of the hype is that, given Amazon's size, growth and influence over businesses across many different sectors, it could quickly and powerfully sway the digital currency game should it ever get involved. Now, yet another rumor has begun to circulate: Will Amazon accept bitcoin payments in the near future?
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According to Daily HODL, an anonymous software engineer at Amazon has indicated that the company has discussed accepting bitcoin payments 'multiple times,' with the primary hesitation related to how the business would deal with returns and refunds. Bitcoin's price remains highly volatile, and it could be difficult for the company to accurately refund customers the same value that they paid into the system.
No Official Word, But Plenty of Signals
For its part, Amazon has remained quiet when it comes to the possibility for cryptocurrency payments. Still, there are many signs that CEO Jeff Bezos' team is interested in exploring options surrounding digital tokens.
A subsidiary of the company called Amazon Technologies Inc. recently received a patent for a streaming data marketplace with cryptocurrency implications. The patent goes so far as to cite bitcoin specifically as a potential use case. Further, as indicated above, the company has purchased three cryptocurrency-related domains in the past several months, including amazonethereum.com, amazoncryptocurrency.com and amazoncryptocurrencies.com. The company already owns amazonbitcoin.com, a site that currently automatically redirects to the company's main site.
Further, Amazon Web Services offers blockchain solutions. AWS Blockchain Templates announced recently that 'these templates will let you launch an ethereum ... or hyperledger fabric (private) network in a matter of minutes and with just a few clicks.'
This is all to say that, although Amazon has yet to formally jump in to the digital currency world with, say, its own mainstream coin, the company has numerous times flirted with the possibility of getting involved.
Investing in cryptocurrencies and Initial Coin Offerings ('ICOs') is highly risky and speculative, and this article is not a recommendation by Investopedia or the writer to invest in cryptocurrencies or ICOs. Since each individual's situation is unique, a qualified professional should always be consulted before making any financial decisions. Investopedia makes no representations or warranties as to the accuracy or timeliness of the information contained herein. As of the date this article was written, the author owns bitcoin and ripple.