When BAKKT first launched, there was so much anticipation, truly anything other than a gazillion dollars of volume probably would have been a disappointment. But, as one would expect in the tech sector, things scaled, and quickly began scaling very briskly. By the time numbers of contracts were an impressive number, most people stopped tracking the progress and focused on a myriad of other disappointments in the crypto world. That's human nature for 'ya.

But, the other major rumor abounding was that mass adoption of crypto was right around the corner from an alliance with Starbucks. Crypto would be let loose on the world like a plague from the Riddler, but why aren't we already seeing that BTC-loccamoccalatte with sprinkles?

Patience, young Skywalker.

In an article on Global Crypto Press, link found below, the alliance may be coming soon, and it should be a win-win-win, for the coffee shop, for the customer, and for crypto alike.

They're attempting to tackle some of crypto's top issues - adoption, and real world use. 

They'll be doing it with products intended for both sides of a transaction, my source explained:

"For the everyday person there's going to be an app for iOS and Android, with this you can buy select cryptocurrencies, or use it as wallet and simply deposit cryptocurrency obtained elsewhere. But this wallet isn't going to be marketed as 'storage' like others - this wallet is where you put the crypto you want to spend."

So with the wallet for the customer, next comes the merchant...

"The other half of will be the merchant services. The goal here is for any business to be able to implement this without any learning curve.  Any business that currently takes Apple Pay or Samsung Pay - their employees already know everything they need to know." 

This is an arrangement between the business, in this case Starbucks, which seems like the perfect fit for the demographic, and there's no question they are a perfect launching vehicle for crypto. But, many many be asking why this is the project that will succeed when others have tried to bring crypto to retail without success.

That's because funds available in the app will be guaranteed by Bakkt, and they believe their promises carry clout that other startups simply do not.

As we've all experienced, sometimes transactions can take longer than we want, and WAY longer than you'd want to stand at the counter of a business awkwardly waiting for it to clear.

But any funds sent via the app will clear instantly, at least as far as the merchant and customer is concerned - even if the actual transaction on the blockchain lags behind.

"Bakkt basically pays for it, then gets reimbursed a couple minutes later when the crypto transfer is complete" my source explained.

Merchants will have the option to have the transaction deposited to them as USD, or keep it in crypto.  Which is another huge point as crypto's volatility can scare some businesses away from using it, but the ones using Bakkt's merchant solution can rest easy knowing they'll receive the exact amount they charged, in USD, even if the customer paid in crypto.

Launching With A Retail Powerhouse -  Starbucks!

Possibly Bakkt's biggest advantage - Starbucks will be giving these products a massive jump start as the first business you'll be able to pay with crypto at using the Bakkt wallet.

This isn't just a way to get a lot of people to download the wallet, it's a selling point that will convince a lot of merchants, as my source explained:

"Any merchant on the fence will be convinced when they hear Starbucks trusts this tech at their thousands of locations.  There's always one nearby, so we can encourage them to simply try it themselves. Once they try it themselves they will see, there's no good reason not to implement it."

So, if we see a successful launch with a superstar like Starbucks, it is very likely the FOMO of the business world will kick in, and that may actually be the trend vehicle more than anything current crypto projects are trying. I imagine that if crypto-backed cards, gift cards or auto-pay phone mechanisms become popularized, then the next phase will be for the FOMO bandwagon of legitimate crypto projects will be the next step. This means, if it worked for BTC, why not ADA, EOS and the others? I say "amen, mah man" as it is the thing they should have already been working towards all along! Wake up crypto world; time to get your work pants on and tell the world 'bout crypto!

If you enjoyed this read, or just spent too much time here to validate what you will never get back, TIP ME! If you don't wanna, that's fine too. Otherwise, TIP ME!

Original article can be found here:

https://www.globalcryptopress.com/2020/01/exclusive-bakkt-wants-to-lead.html

For the funny stuff, go here:

https://www.publish0x.com/crypto-satire-fake-news-ripped-from-the-headlines