As Bitcoin soars, major brands find crypto more palatable

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Bitcoin (BTC) price rises and falls. Just like any stock or asset does, it always has been and probably always will be. But lately their jumps have been much bigger than their declines. In other words, crypto enthusiasts are enjoying their own version of the Roaring Twenties, the period of Western economic prosperity following the devastating Great War.

Similarly, Bitcoin holders and crypto advocates gleefully check their digital wallets and watch token values ​​soar just two years after the bearish market began.

While cryptocurrency brethren and decentralized maximalists toast to their plumper portfolios, the elephant in the room is new US President Donald Trump. Trump’s upcoming second term in the White House could reshape the cryptocurrency landscape, but like rising token prices, this remains entirely speculative.

However, there is no doubt that Trump’s full embrace of digital assets brings many advantages to the industry. Some have pointed to a July quote from Trump stating that he would establish a “strategic national Bitcoin reserve” as a hint that Bitcoin as legal tender might be on the table. This too is just speculation, but it certainly fuels an industry that has gained momentum in the last year.

Realistically, mainstream adoption is unlikely to achieve its ultimate goal immediately after Trump’s inauguration, or even within the first year of his term.

However, the sector’s sky-high optimism, along with tangible progress in notable areas such as real-world asset tokenization, spot Bitcoin ETFs, and the emerging AI-powered use case, gives it stronger roots.

While technological advances are great (and necessary), the path to mainstream adoption will not be paved by a revolutionary autonomous liquid repurchase platform. Instead, mainstream adoption will be achieved through meaningful engagement with brands outside the financial and technology sectors.

Of course, major brands like Nike, Starbucks, Louis Vuitton, and others may have embraced NFTs following their unprecedented success in 2021. However, joining a wave of excitement that ultimately turns sour is not a very meaningful endeavor.

Thanks to the industry’s renewed success and Bitcoin’s gains, many major brands have announced plans to accept crypto payments. Two weeks ago, French department store Printemps announced that it was working with Binance and French fintech firm Lyzi to accept Bitcoin and Ethereum (ETH) at all its stores in France. Earlier this month, luxury cruise line Virgin Voyages began accepting Bitcoin payments, while luxury goods maker ST Dupont said it would start accepting crypto payments at two stores in Paris by Christmas.

While this may be a public relations stunt to come off as innovative and even a strategic business decision by some slumping luxury brands, it still brings crypto into the mainstream.

Fintech solutions such as PayPal and WooCommerce, as well as brick-and-mortar stores that accept crypto payments, are increasingly enabling online shoppers and sellers to integrate and pay using digital assets. These payment gateways help bridge the gaps between crypto and the broader economic environment.

GT Protocol aims to achieve this precise goal by creating AI agents that can seamlessly integrate into both crypto and non-crypto services. The AI ​​executive technology platform has integrated AI agents with major global brands including Amazon, Shein, Nike and more. As a project demonstrating the power of AI and crypto through blockchain execution technology, GT Protocol sees the convergence of AI brokers, crypto, and e-commerce as a way for its platform to onboard more users to web4.

There are many ways to onboard new users, but collaborating or integrating crypto payment channels with mainstream brands seems like a shortcut. If crypto can maintain its momentum and continue to innovate in the coming year, you can expect more brands across many key industries to look for ways to bridge crypto and retail.