Q : WHY SHOULD TRAVEL ADVISORS CARE ABOUT CRYPTOCURRENCY ? A : A great deal of wealth has been created , particularly among high-income individuals . According to the Federal Reserve ’ s annual report on the 2021 Economic Well-Being of US Households , “ 46 %, nearly half , of the US crypto investors had an annual income of $ 100,000 or more , while 29 percent had an income under $ 50,000 .”
Q : HOW IS CRYPTOCURRENCY POISED TO IMPACT TRAVEL ? A : Cryptocurrency presents a new way to pay for travel services . Companies such as Travala are already exploiting this . If this method is ignored , it will likely result in loss of business , particularly among high-income clients .
Q : WHAT AREAS OF TRAVEL WILL BE IMPACTED FIRST ? A : The first area likely to be impacted is payment using crypto , whether that ’ s hotels , flights , or other vendors . The second may be tipping via crypto . On Bitcoin . com , there are several upcoming tipping platforms gaining traction .
Q : HOW DOES THE CURRENT ECONOMIC CLIMATE IMPACT ADOPTION , IF AT ALL ? A : This will depend on the type of crypto being used . Some believe Bitcoin is an inflation hedge , while others believe Ethereum will be switching to a different consensus method ( proof of stake versus proof of work ). Ethereum will actually be a better inflation hedge according to Seeking Alpha , a crowd-sourced content service for financial markets .
Q : HOW MUCH SHOULD TRAVEL ADVISORS EXPECT THIS TO IMPACT THEIR DAY-TO-DAY LIFE THIS YEAR ? IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS ? A : As more wealth moves to crypto , accepting cryptocurrency as a form of payment will be a necessity dependent on the profile of the customer base . Millennials and younger will be crucial to accept crypto .
Q : HOW MUCH CAUTION SHOULD ADVISORS EXERCISE WHEN LEARN- ING ABOUT THIS NEW SPACE ?
A : Crypto is highly volatile and thus should not be used as a stored value . Travel advisors should work with companies that allow acceptance of crypto but should be paid in fiat currency . The leading company for cryptocurrency acceptance for travel agents is BitPay .
Q : HOW CAN TRAVEL ADVISORS SAFELY EDUCATE THEMSELVES ? A : Advisors can experiment by buying a small amount of crypto , or by working with BitPay to accept crypto with clients who prefer this method . There are many education-oriented videos that are easily accessible to break down these complex ideas .
Norm Rose , Senior Technology and Corporate Market Analyst for Phocuswright , has been an analyst and consultant for nearly two decades — focusing on emerging technologies in travel and how they affect business practices . Norm has worked with a number of third-party developers creating software for the business travel market in the early to mid-1990s , including early prototypes of self-booking tools and expense management systems .
DISCLAIMER The information in this article is provided for educational purposes only and is not specific to you , the reader , or anyone else . The information in The Compass Magazine is not intended to be and does not constitute financial advice , investment advice , trading advice or any other advice . Please do your own research before making any investment decisions as cryptocurrency investments are volatile and high-risk in nature .
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