Stephen Pair, prominent cryptocurrency proponent and CEO of popular Bitcoin payment processor Bitpay, recently emphasized his belief that cryptocurrency will become mainstream within three to five years.
In a recent interview on the CNBC program Squawk Box, Pair explained that he has reassessed his previous belief that it would take ten years or more before blockchain based payments were widely accepted:
I used to say 10 years, but now I think it’s more like three to five years until you can go into a restaurant, a retail establishment, and everybody’s going to expect that that store will be able to accept a blockchain payment.
He also believes a tokenized future involving blockchain payments using a variety of digital assets is inevitable.
And remember, this is not just about Bitcoin or the various tokens we see today. It’s also about issuing dollars on a blockchain, or euros on a blockchain. And so we’re not just talking about payments denominated in Bitcoin terms when we speak about blockchain payments.
Pair told CNBC that his business is built on the premise that future payments will all be conducted on a blockchain. “And we’re building a platform for that future.”
The head of BitPay was also outspoken regarding the role of speculation in the price of Bitcoin. “A very big component of the price is certainly speculation. It’s investors that are speculating on the future usage and adoption of this technology,” he told Squawk Box. “I’m sure a small component of that price is the actual utility. And that’s what BitPay is focused on – is using the platform and delivering products to our customers that they find valuable.”
