Robert McMillan on the Wired web-site reports that, “Over the past year, it’s become a lot easier to buy bitcoin, thanks to services such as Coinbase. And thanks to retailers such as Overstock.com and TigerDirect, it’s now a lot easier to to spend them online.” Today, some shops such as Buyer’s Best Friend in San Francisco and restaurants such as the Pink Cow in Tokyo accept payments in bitcoin. Basically, you hold your smartphone up to a scanner at the cash register. However, such systems can be difficult for businesses to set up.” But that doesn’t solve collecting payments at your local coffee shop.

New multi-payment register so that never miss out on a sale

Apparently the CEO of Square, the innovative credit card processor and point-of-sale system provider, Jack Dorsey, says they are building a register that will allow companies to accept bitcoin as well as Apple’s new contactless payment system, Apple Pay. Although the company didn’t have any word on when its bitcoin-ready register might be on the market. 

But it said say that it wants to support new types of payment systems. “Square sellers should never have to miss out on a sale. They should be able to accept any form of payment,” said Square spokesman Johnny Brackett.

Future of Bitcoin

McMillan closed with, “Though many believe Bitcoin can remake the way we handle money—removing some of the control traditional exhibited by big banks and government organizations—it is still a long way from reaching the mainstream. But with company such as Overstock now accepting Bitcoin payments across the globe and Square flirting with a Bitcoin register, the currency is inching closer.”

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CTMfile take: Retailers are moving to a position on accepting payments at point of sale, that as long as the customer wants to pay with a currency that is legal tender, they will accept it as they don’t want to miss any sales. Square’s new multi-payment system register functionality could become essential as retailers will not want turn away first Apple Pay users and then Bitcoin users.