At a glance: Accepting crypto vs. credit cards – Buy K2 incense with Bitcoins

Cryptocurrency is fundamentally different from credit cards. However, they share similarities that are important to businesses. Specifically, they both provide a way for customers to pay electronically, which is convenient for in-person transactions and a necessity for online sales. Buy K2 incense with Bitcoins

A side-by-side comparison illustrates where key differences lie.

Crypto

Credit card

Payments

Payments not required to run through a payment tool.

Payments must run through a payment processor.

Fees

0% if done directly with customer. Can be 1% or so using a payment tool.

Standard flat rate is 2.9% plus 30 cents per transaction, but varies by processor.

Safety and security

Little to no responsibility for compliance or fraud.

Responsibility for compliance and (via fees) for fraud.

Resolving customer issues

No legal protections or chargebacks to manage, but you’ll likely need to make clear your own policies.

Decisions often in the hands of card networks, and they often favor the customer.

Settlement

Flexible and fast, but also can be volatile.

Slower, but likely more stable.

Regulatory oversight

Not much now, for better or worse, but stay tuned.

Stable and uniform, and comes with lots of compliance effort.

Convenience

Transactions are comparatively fast, but there are some learning curves.

Transactions are quick and how-to is well known, but underlying processes can be hairier.