The role of stablecoins in remote work beyond COVID19
As the world deals with the global crisis caused by the COVID19 pandemic; something unprecedented has occurred in the working world: Remote work is, for the first time in history, the norm.
It’s not that remote work didn’t exist before. UK alone had 2 million freelancers, and the US expected to hit 42% by 2020. Even in the months before the COVID19 outbreak, more and more companies were already taking the home-office option. But now, with these extraordinary circumstances, traditional companies have moved to 100% remote; and thus, incidentally, discovering the perks of having a remote team.
“We’ve had more than a few people tell us their bosses were against working from home prior to COVID-19. Now, their opinion has changed; they saw that their business can and will continue to grow despite the location of their employees” — Forbes
This trend is not likely to disappear after the coronavirus crisis is overcome. Some companies like Twitter and Slack have announced that they’re keeping the home-office scheme after the pandemic. The possibility to work remotely will also drive employers to hire talent from all around the World, now that a geography will no longer be a limitation.
But there’s still a lot to do if today’s world wants to adapt to remote work. The obstacles freelancers and remote workers face are no news; especially when it comes to receive their payment. International clients usually pay in their own currency, and sometimes, whether they realize it or not, freelancers can lose money due to exchange rates when receiving payments from them. Some transfer services publicize a small transaction fee, but in reality they have high exchange rates behind that low fee, being just as expensive at the end.
What are their current options? Traditional banks charging high fees for foreign transfers and an inconvenient conversion rate? There are other P2P services, but they often fail to be available in every country or situation.
Stablecoins for salaries and payments
When cryptocurrencies appeared, new use cases for freelancers and global nomads were immediately discussed. And yes, digital money offers certain advantages over national currencies and foreign exchange. They promise cheaper, faster transfers. But has it really worked like that in real life, when we examine crypto’s +10 years history so far?
Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin remain volatile. This is the main problem preventing the wide adoption of digital currencies and their everyday applications. As a freelancer (actually, as a individual) you wouldn’t want the value of your earnings changing constantly out of your control. And this is where stablecoins (stable cryptocurrencies) come into play.
For a remote worker, getting paid in a stablecoin means:
- Receiving their payment through low-cost transactions, which is also a benefit for their employer
- Protecting the value of their earnings and savings, globally
- Spending, buying or saving their money in any way they want, anywhere in the world.
The rise of stablecoins in 2020
While remote work is gaining ground -fast- the same thing is happening to stablecoins, and at the same time.
It’s no secret that the coronavirus pandemic has made evident the need for digital methods of payments, because they’re more versatile and practical than traditional money when it comes to extreme circumstances like these. And among the existing options for digital transactions, stablecoins are shining as the safest bet.
“Over the past month, stablecoins have lived up to their moniker and value proposition. We’ve seen a flight from traditional crypto assets to stablecoins similar to 2018. The market cap of all stablecoins has swelled from $5 billion at the start of the year to above $8 billion in April. And the improved stability and usability of stablecoins equips them to rise to the occasion and prove utility beyond demand from exchange arbitrage and safe haven appeal” — Coindesk, April 2020
Payments and remittances are but two of the many possible use cases for stablecoins, as well reflected in the article Are stablecoins the next big things in e-commerce?. We know that our stablecoin GLX, for example (we’d rather take our own product as an example instead of appointing another), the only stablecoin today linked to a currency basket, has immense potential for International Organizations, for NGOs and charities (actually you already donate to Africa with our stablecoin here), e-commerce and purchases; as well as payments and remittances.
Remote work is likely here to stay. And so are stablecoins.
Those who were once digital natives have turned into digital nomads, as an ever-growing number of people are refraining from traditional work in offices and are moving to remote working formats. Such employees are adept at using digital assets, and stablecoins fit the bill as their instrument of choice (Everex blog)
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