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What Can I Buy With Bitcoin in Australia 2023
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Sinead Burgess
Ever since Satoshi Nakamoto released Bitcoin, the coin has massively spread throughout the world in less than a decade of its existence. Although most people see Bitcoin as an investment asset, there are many Bitcoin enthusiasts who believe in its value and would rather use it as a substitute for fiat money.
As a result, more and more vendors and companies have started accepting cryptocurrencies (primarily Bitcoin) as legitimate payment, including large-scale companies like Amazon, Microsoft, and Tesla and small-scale private retailers and merchants throughout the world.
In today’s article, we’ll explain where users can spend crypto as a payment system in Australia, but before we delve into that, we’ll cover an overview of Bitcoin and the ways in which you can purchase this coin in the first place.
Bitcoin or the World’s First Cryptocurrency
We’re sure that you’ve got the basics of Bitcoin covered but in lieu of a beginner’s recap, we’ll provide a short history of the world’s first cryptocurrency, Bitcoin.
Not many people know that Bitcoin wasn’t the first attempt at an alternative currency, but it was the first successful attempt at a digital payment method. Bitcoin was created by a mysterious developer by the name of Satoshi Nakamoto in 2009. The project promised lower fees and higher security compared to traditional payment systems.
One of the main perks of Bitcoin is its transparency. Every Bitcoin transaction is recorded and stored on a public and transparent ledger called blockchain. The blockchain is the engine of cryptocurrencies, and everything concerning Bitcoin is permanently stored in the database. It can be said that Bitcoin is a direct result of the 2008 world economic crisis during which many people lost their money when the banks and Wall Street went down.
There are two ways in which you can get your hands on digital goodies like Bitcoin. You can either mine Bitcoin yourself or buy it through a cryptocurrency exchange. Bitcoin mining is done through powerful computers or mining rigs that solve mathematical equations to guess a nonce number and verify the transactions on the blockchain. The miners who operate these nodes earn a small Bitcoin reward for their effort. Purchasing Bitcoin through an exchange is much simpler, as mining comes with considerable costs, ranging from computer hardware to electricity bills. To purchase Bitcoin, users must have an account on a cryptocurrency exchange, but more importantly, they need a Bitcoin wallet.
Bitcoin Wallets
Cryptocurrency wallets are a must when handling crypto as they’re the only way of storing them. Crypto wallets don’t necessarily store any bitcoins as they are not physical coins but only exist on the blockchain. The wallets actually store the private keys that give holders access to said bitcoins.
If you lose or misplace the private keys, then you can freely say goodbye to your crypto. There have been news and reports that nearly 20% of all bitcoins in circulation have been lost due to user negligence of private keys, so make sure their safety is a priority.
There are two main types of Bitcoin wallets – hardware wallets and software wallets.
Software or hot wallets are digital wallets that maintain a constant online connection and act similarly to a debit card belonging to a bank account. Users can buy Bitcoin from these wallets on the go as they most commonly come in the form of mobile apps for Android and iOS.
The wallets can also be installed on desktop devices like Windows, Linux, and macOS. They’re considered less safe than their hardware counterparts due to their constant internet connection and mobile device support, which make them liable to hacker attacks and malware.
Hardware wallets, sometimes called cold storage wallets, are physical devices that don’t maintain an internet connection and are considered the safest way to store your private keys. These can be connected to a PC, and some of them offer Bluetooth connections for mobile devices. A hybrid method is best utilised when the bulk of your crypto is stored in a cold wallet while a small portion remains in a hot wallet for day-to-day trading.
Where to Buy Bitcoin (BTC)?
There are many crypto trading platforms, both supported and based in Australia. Traders can make their choice based on the features they’re interested in, such as instant buying, peer-to-peer trading, options trading, margin trading, etc. Crypto exchanges charge trading fees, withdrawal fees, and sometimes deposit fees. Users can purchase crypto with fiat currencies, or they can trade their own crypto for another crypto.
The payment methods on these crypto exchanges vary from exchange to exchange and they include bank transfers, credit cards, debit cards, crypto payments, PayPal, BPAY, PayID etc. Alternatively, users can also purchase Bitcoin from Bitcoin ATMs. Here is a list of all of the Bitcoin ATMs around Melbourne. It’s worth mentioning that Bitcoin ATMs have drastically higher fees compared to crypto trading platforms.
Aside from trading Bitcoin, users can also try their hand at purchasing cheaper digital currencies called altcoins like Ethereum (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), Ripple (XRP), etc.
The best beginner exchange on the Australian crypto market is CoinSpot. The platform hosts a classic crypto brokerage for buying crypto as well as a peer-to-peer platform with more advanced features.
Another great platform that supports Australian dollar (AUD) purchases is Swyftx. The trading fees are on the lower side, which is a relief considering the Australian market is known to have above industry-grade trading fees. Other trading platforms supported in Australia include CoinJar, eToro, Binance, Coinbase, and many others.
Where to Spend Bitcoin in Australia?
Now that we’ve covered some of the most popular Bitcoin exchanges and wallets, it’s time to find vendors that accept Bitcoin payments.
Some of the services that you can pay for in BTC in Australia include online shopping sites, restaurants, media companies, hotels, furniture shops, etc. To spend Bitcoin at any vendor, users should make a transaction from their wallet to the shop’s receiving wallet, and the most simple way to conduct this type of transaction is to send the agreed amount of Bitcoin by scanning a Bitcoin QR code.
We’ll list some of the more interesting shops and companies that support digital asset payments in Australia. These types of shops are usually located in the vicinity of larger cities like Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra, though it’s not uncommon for shops in rural areas to support crypto too.
Vendors That Accept Bitcoin Payments
As we stated, there are many shops that support Bitcoin payments in exchange for their services and in what follows, we’ll list some of them.
For instance, there’s the Jam’s Karaoke Bar, a culinary treat with a Japanese entertainment twist to it. Located just north of Sydney in Newcastle, the Japanese themed bar accepts Bitcoin payments for their services.
Hunt Furniture is a furniture shop located in South Australia. Their furniture is made out of locally sourced wood and handmade by their own carpenters. If you want to spend your BTC on decorating your office or living room with locally crafted furniture, then Hunt Furniture is the place for you.
King’s Road Brewing Company is the perfect place to quench your thirst when visiting West Australia as the brewery spans over 90 acres of farmland and uses locally sourced ingredients for its in-house brews. Despite the rural look and ambient, they are one of the most modern breweries as you can buy a pint or two and pay with cryptocurrencies.
These are just several of the vendors that support crypto payments in Australia.
A Few Words Before You Go…
Cryptocurrencies seem to be the way of the future, and Australia is in no way lagging behind. In just over a decade since crypto was invented, Australians have opened their own crypto exchanges, created and regulated laws about cryptocurrency trading, and started accepting crypto payments without any issues.
If you ever find yourself in the land Downunder and don’t have any brown bombers ($1 AUD) or jolly green giants ($100 AUD) in your regular wallet, rest assured that your digital wallet and its contents are more than welcome.