# Northern Irish Building Company adopting Bitcoin Payment



## RichInSpirit (28 Feb 2018)

Saw this a couple of days ago on the RTE website.

"One of Northern Ireland's largest homebuilders is to accept the digital currency Bitcoin."

Is this the beginning of widespread mainstream adaptation of Bitcoin as a useful currency?


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## tecate (28 Feb 2018)

RichInSpirit said:


> Is this the beginning of widespread mainstream adaptation of Bitcoin as a useful currency?


I don't think this example is.  There have been a long list of media pieces on bitcoin being accepted for various properties around the World, first solicitors practice in Ireland to accept BTC, first professional soccer transfer to be completed in BTC, etc.  They're usually just to garner publicity.

Mainstream adoption of BTC can only come when transaction fees and transaction times are reduced significantly. However, there's no such thing as bad publicity - so whilst they don't have much worth, it's no harm.


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## TheBigShort (28 Feb 2018)

Given bitcoins price volatility I would take this with a pinch of salt. I read that article and it doesn't confirm for what purpose the building company will accept bitcoin - i.e. it doesn't say it will sell a €250,000 home for 40 bitcoin.

Its possible it may start using bitcoin for ancillary activities it is engaged in.


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## RichInSpirit (28 Feb 2018)

It might also be a hedging strategy against price fluctuations in Sterling when Brexit kicks in.


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## Firefly (28 Feb 2018)

TheBigShort said:


> Given bitcoins price volatility I would take this with a pinch of salt. I read that article and it doesn't confirm for what purpose the building company will accept bitcoin - i.e. it doesn't say it will sell a €250,000 home for 40 bitcoin.
> 
> Its possible it may start using bitcoin for ancillary activities it is engaged in.



Will Bitcoin be the new "cash" price?


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## tecate (28 Feb 2018)

Firefly said:


> Will Bitcoin be the new "cash" price?


Technically possible but with both on and off ramps regulated (by way of Know Your Customer & Anti Money Laundering policies), it may not be straightforward.

Bitcoin is very easy to track if someone slips up and gets linked to a bitcoin address. The IRS in the States has invested in Crypto network tracking and analysis technology.


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## TheBigShort (28 Feb 2018)

Firefly said:


> Will Bitcoin be the new "cash" price?



Possibly. But I would imagine only useful for small transactions. For large transactions like houses, it's hard to imagine how a building company could return revenues that are considerably lower than what the estimated returns would likely to be.


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## tecate (28 Feb 2018)

TheBigShort said:


> For large transactions like houses, it's hard to imagine how a building company could return revenues that are considerably lower than what the estimated returns would likely to be.


If it was/is possible with cash, then potentially it's possible with BTC but likely to be much more difficult.  They take a slice off the top.


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