In summary:
- Contaminated banknotes have been linked to the spread of the Coronavirus.
- The World Health Organization has advised the use of contactless payments to avoid chances of contracting the virus.
- China was the first country to establish a link between banknotes and the spread of the Coronavirus.
- Bitcoin (BTC) and other cryptos can provide an alternative to paying with physical cash.
Earlier this year, Chinese banks were the first to start disinfecting banknotes through the use of ultraviolet light or high temperature in an attempt to stop the rapid spread of the Coronavirus in the country. A spokesperson of the World Health Organization has now advised the use of contactless payments in a bid to curb the spread of the Coronavirus through contaminated money. The Bank of England has also confirmed that ‘dirty money’ can transfer bacteria and viruses to owners and end recipients during transactions. With the Coronavirus having a global infection rate of 121,175 confirmed cases and claiming the lives of 4,377 individuals at the time of writing this, Bitcoin (BTC) and in general, all cryptocurrencies, provide an alternative to using physical banknotes for the payment of goods and services.
Bitcoin (BTC) and Crypto Provide the Best Alternative
The exchange of BTC and other cryptocurrencies such as ETH, XRP, and LTC, is truly a contactless event. All the user needs is the corresponding address of the person they want to pay. They can also scan QR codes that are embedded with the aforementioned crypto address of the recipient.
Payment processing apps that offer merchant services such as Pundi X, Bitpay, CoinPayments and Coinbase Commerce, provide businesses with avenues of accepting Bitcoin and other cryptos for their online and onsite stores. This, in turn, bypasses the need to use physical cash for the payment of goods and services.
Whether paying directly via the use of a crypto address or through a crypto merchant service provider, going completely contactless will lessen the risk of contracting the Coronavirus through potentially contaminated banknotes in circulation. As a result, the risk of contracting the infection is drastically reduced.
The use of Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies will also bolster the awareness that digital assets are legal tender. Countries such as France, Germany, Australia, Japan and South Korea, have acknowledged that BTC and other cryptocurrencies are a form of money. Therefore, citizens of these countries that are also hard hit by the Coronavirus, can instantly switch to contactless payments through digital assets.
(Image courtesy of Unsplash.com)