A kit to help local businesses start using Bitcoin \ stacker news ~bitcoin

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A kit to help local businesses start using Bitcoin

666 sats \ 25 comments \ @dtonon 21 Sep 2023 bitcoin

Do you have any resources or tutorials to share, preferably multilingual and addressing different countries, on how a company can start accepting (and spending) Bitcoin? I'm thinking of something that focuses not only on the technical part, but especially on the accounting/tax part; in fact, I suppose the latter is one of the main "pain points" currently slowing down adoption.

I would like to create a simple web site with this kind of information, and a self printable promotional kit (business card, sticker, flayer), so everyone can use them to orange pill local business. SN and Nostr could be pointed out as "help communities".

Talking to an entrepreneur and showing him live how to set up a portfolio and receive a transaction is absolutely fantastic; providing him with a reminder to be fully autonomous and sovereign could make a difference on long-term commitment.

Any help/idea?

PS: For reference, already posted on nostr some days ago.

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166 sats \ 16 replies \ @DarthCoin 21 Sep 2023

Here is a list of flyers:

Here is a list of guides, translated also in multiple languages:

... and many more on my substack (over 60 guides translated in 6 languages)

21 sats \ 13 replies \ @dtonon OP 21 Sep 2023

Thanks @DarthCoin, good stuff, as usual.

I think we should also start to address the accounting/tax point: a lot of small business are worried about this and are discouraged to use Bitcoin by their accountants (who are totally ignorant of the subject). Do you have any info/ideas/suggestion about this?

63 sats \ 6 replies \ @DarthCoin 21 Sep 2023

Bitcoin is cash money in any accounting. No more no less. Done. Why complicate it when is so fucking simple. The accountants are really idiots, always complicating things. You use BTC only as a payment system, like visa or paypal. That's it. You do not have to do any changes in your accounting or management software. All your sales tickets/invoices are expressed in local currency, you are just taking the value of that invoice in sats. That's all, in your accounting you declare the sale in that currency NOT in sats.

The accountant, taxman or whatever don't even have to know that you take sats. Is not their damn business.

0 sats \ 5 replies \ @dtonon OP 21 Sep 2023

That's all, in your accounting you declare the sale in that currency NOT in sats.

Unlucky is not so simple everywhere. In Italy, and I suppose many other EU countries, when you get a payment you have to register it and prove the payment channel. So give to the accountant the converted value is not enough. Then if you own bitcoin as a business you have to keep a separate balance and bitcoin is managed as a foreign currency.

I know, we should change the rules. Step by step.

0 sats \ 4 replies \ @DarthCoin 21 Sep 2023

Who stop you to not say a word that you took sats and say it was cash? LOL sometimes people are such pussies...

0 sats \ 3 replies \ @dtonon OP 21 Sep 2023

You missed the point.

In Italy, if I have sold you a service/product I must produce the invoice; the invoice must be linked to a payment record, usually a bank statement. If I'm payed by sats I have to say it, otherwise I am fined. Plain and simple.

Because that, I think we need to offer a clean view of the legal situation by country, explaining how Bitcoin can be correctly managed in a standard accounting system.

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @DarthCoin 21 Sep 2023

If I'm payed by sats I have to say it, otherwise I am fined.

https://imgprxy.stacker.news/yER477uALuuxg1qynyHpD0BFiB0nV6ufzpvCrTMc87M/rs:fit:600:500:0/g:no/aHR0cHM6Ly9pLnBvc3RpbWcuY2MvMFFYYkNrUVcvbm8tZ292LmpwZw

All depends WHERE you position yourself in this pyramid

https://imgprxy.stacker.news/ujnPC_Ofclillqj6h3Rp1SWX7sgP5rElsCT6__SjSCI/rs:fit:600:500:0/g:no/aHR0cHM6Ly9pLnBvc3RpbWcuY2MvRkhGRkpRN3EvbmF0dXJhbC1sYXctcHlyYW1pZC5qcGc

0 sats \ 1 reply \ @DarthCoin 21 Sep 2023

I will repeat: bitcoin is cash. Is nobody's business what am I doing with my cash. That's it. Keep living in that cage and you will never be free.

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @dtonon OP 21 Sep 2023

Clearly, we have different backgrounds and so different ideas. We both want Bitcoin success, we just have different strategies.

Instead of an individual action against the rules, I prefer to spread a collective movement that moves legally towards Bitcoin adoption, and eventually will bring forward a change in the law. In fact Bitcoin can lives without any problem with the current rules, but will inevitably end up changing them.

reply on another page

0 sats \ 5 replies \ @aoeu 21 Sep 2023

Although I'd hate to suggest it, I wonder if using a service like OpenNode/IBEX to convert immediately back into fiat would eliminate the accounting hassle of staying entirely in bitcoin? Or, they'd at least be able to provide data that the business' accountants would understand.

21 sats \ 0 replies \ @dtonon OP 21 Sep 2023

Yes, would eliminate the "hassle", but this way we are going nowhere. Maybe it is better to let the business owner manually convert to fiat, so he can decrease the conversion ratio when he trusts Bitcoin more as a safe store of value.

This article, recently shared on SN, talks also about this: https://graduallythensuddenly.xyz/pay-me-in-bitcoin-theory/

0 sats \ 3 replies \ @DarthCoin 21 Sep 2023

Going back to fiat is lame and useless. NEVER recommend to a merchant to do such thing! Damn it, going back to fiat will never create that Bitcoin circular economy! https://darthcoin.substack.com/p/how-bitcoin-will-save-the-world

0 sats \ 2 replies \ @aoeu 21 Sep 2023

I was chatting with a local bison rancher about accepting bitcoin and he mentioned that he would love to accept bitcoin (via Lightning), but needs to be able to pay bills in USD (feed, equipment, etc). So what am I supposed to do? Tell him that he shouldn't do that? It is all bitcoin or nothing? Or show him ways to accept bitcoin and then he can choose to convert it back to USD to pay for those bills?? The former would mean that he won't accept bitcoin, while the later means that he will accept bitcoin and be part of developing the bitcoin circular economy.

Until the places that he buys his feed from and gets his equipment also take bitcoin, there will always be a need to convert back to fiat. Yes, I'd love a circular bitcoin economy, but it can't go from nothing to circular economy as quickly if there aren't these (temporary) intermediary steps.

If also showing businesses how to convert back to fiat means that they will actually start accepting bitcoin, so be it. It won't be my recommendation, but it is still reality.

0 sats \ 1 reply \ @DarthCoin 21 Sep 2023

Simple: he will find another suppliers that accept Bitcoin or convince them to accept. THIS is how you start the bitcoin circular economy and you NEVER go back to fiat.

If you do not do this, you will NEVER escape from fiat slavery, no matter what water you drink to get drunk...

FIAT DELENDA EST - watch that presentation by Jimmy Song.

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @aoeu 21 Sep 2023

In an ideal world, this is definitely the way to do a bitcoin circular economy. Screw anyone not accepting bitcoin.

We can all agree that the ideal scenario would be: I pay for bison from him in bitcoin and he pays for his supplies with bitcoin. Done.

Other two more realistic options for him:

He takes bitcoin, keeps some to save/spend, converts some to fiat as needed. or 2) He chooses to not take bitcoin at all because he needs the fiat to buy supplies.

Option 1 would at least be a step forward in the right direction. It would be better than him not taking bitcoin at all. If I force the ideal scenario then I am stuck not being able to buy bison with bitcoin.

I bet forcing the ideal scenario would actually be possible in certain parts of the world that have a fiat currency that is hyperinflating rather than the USD "we slowly steal your value" inflation.

I'll check out that video. Thanks.

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @fm 21 Sep 2023

nice!!

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @aoeu 21 Sep 2023

Thanks. Good stuff to review here.

10 sats \ 4 replies \ @aoeu 21 Sep 2023

Awesome! I'm thinking the same thing: #260771

We'll have to collaborate. I just added you on Nostr. I just bought some domain names that I thought sounded good for this project!

0 sats \ 3 replies \ @dtonon OP 21 Sep 2023

Great, sure let's collaborate!

Yes, domains... a pain :) I'm starting to wonder if a domain-free or multi-domain approach might make more sense. I care about interesting and useful content, not where it's hosted. I don't mind creating a new brand, Bitcoin is the brand. So I imagine a multilingual website that everyone can host for their community on their own domain, setting the default country/language. But this also has some disadvantages, for example the site owner may not keep it updated/synced or may let the domain expire. I have to think about it more.

Other ideas: the website could be just one long and well structured page with a great UX, this could permit to publish it as a long format content on nostr, and directly print it in a booklet.

0 sats \ 2 replies \ @aoeu 21 Sep 2023

Great points. Keeping everything open source would be good so that people could grab it, use it, and edit it as needed. Maybe a wiki-style format that could be easy to edit as needed?

0 sats \ 1 reply \ @dtonon OP 21 Sep 2023

I'm thinking about github approach, where everyone can open pull request to contribute. So yes, at the end is a sort of wiki format.