Bitcoin is a virtual currency, also known as a cryptocurrency. It was developed in 2009 and has grown at a rapid rate since then. Bitcoin is accepted in almost every country in the world; more than 500 million dollars have been transferred via this method till today. It gives an unprecedented degree of financial autonomy to its users.

Bitcoin is a truly international currency which is inflation-resistant, private, autonomous, does not require consent and cannot be censored. There is no central bank devaluing money through inflation, nor any banks or other middle-men conducting the transfer between sender and receiver. Bitcoin transactions are without borders. The user's private key gives full ownership of Bitcoin units, and with a passphrase you can even store it in your head. 

Anyone who has access to the Internet. Everyone is equal with Bitcoin; the network does not require permission. Age, gender, religion, social status, origin - Bitcoin does not recognise these categories.

If you make the transaction yourself - no. Transactions are pseudonymised and processed by a network without distinction. As Bitcoin is a decentralised network, there is no central location with the power to prevent other nodes from carrying out and verifying transactions - as long as these are covered and valid according to the rules of the network. 

Bitcoin is, in essence, an open-source software. This means that it belongs to no-one and therefore to everyone. No-one can build a fence around Bitcoin - everyone has access.

While in Fiat money the central banks can control the money supply, in Bitcoin it is determined by an algorithm. The miners are forced to mine the amount of bitcoins specified in the protocol. The amount of bitcoins in circulation can be checked in the present by anyone and predicted for the future. Currently, there are more than 17.5 million bitcoins, the creation of new coins reduces by half every four years. There will never be more than 21 million bitcoins.

A Bitcoin wallet is software you can use to administer your bitcoins. There are many wallets for all common computer systems. You can choose between local and online wallets. A local wallet gives greater independence and privacy, while an online wallet can offer more convenience. 

Bitcoins are sent to addresses. An address is an approximately 35-digit character combination. It has a similar function as the IBAN number for bank transfers: You can transfer money to it by entering it in a field on the transfer form. However, unlike IBAN numbers, your wallet can form an almost infinite number of addresses.

It's simple: copy the recipient's address into a field within your Bitcoin Wallet, enter the amount, and click "Send". In most BTC wallets, you can specify the amount in your local currency, so no conversion is required. Payment requests or the payment protocol are often used. They already include the amount and can either be activated by clicking or by copying them into the send field. Mobile wallets are able to scan transaction requests, so you only have to confirm the transaction. Bitcoin Wallets such as BitBucks even allow you pay with BTC by scanning the recipients QR-Code.

The lightning network is a so-called “offchain” network. It does not transport Bitcoins to the blockchain, but operates through “payment channels”. These increase the privacy of transactions and the scalability of the system, but so far they still offer users reduced convenience and security.
An alternative to the lightning network is a fiduciary wallet such as BitBucks, which carries out transactions for users within its own system. This is less autonomous, like lightning, however results in the same effect in terms of scalability and can be better integrated into a convenient user interface.

In Bitcoin terminology, Bitcoin are not saved to addresses but as UTXO or “unspent output”. UTXO is commonly known as “coin” as it represents just this: coinage to the specified value of Bitcoin. Such coins can only be spent as a whole. If they are larger than the sum to be sent, then the remaining amount comes back into your wallet as change.

There are 1,000 virtual currencies, and none of these offer any significant advantages over Bitcoin. Bitcoin is the face of the financial revolution, the brand name of virtual currencies, the best-known and most widely accepted of them all. Why, then, would anyone want to start from scratch with another currency?

PayPal is a closed system. The money that is moved via PayPal remains in that system, and can only be accessed through PayPal software. Bitcoin, on the other hand, is an open system. The user can transfer money directly, without a middle-man. At the same time this means that there is a market for middle-mens, who can provide users with an interface for Bitcoin and, with a wallet like BitBucks, payments are cheaper and more convenient.

A Bitcoin transaction attracts a fee which is paid to the miner. Under normal circumstances fees amount between one and five cents. However during peak times these may increase noticeably to values of 50 cents or even one euro. If you pay too little in fees, you will have to wait longer for confirmation of your transaction. Most wallets select the appropriate fees. Wallets like BitBucks, in which transactions can also be internally calculated, can save you fees and accelerate confirmation of your transactions.

If you sell your Bitcoin on the same day at the end-of-day price, the volatility of the Bitcoin price hardly plays a role for you as a merchant. In addition, due to the pending halving and the deflationary character of Bitcoin, the price is expected to stabilize over time anyway.

If you store your private key securely, no one can confiscate your bitcoins.  Only the one who has the key can access bitcoins. It is protected by strong cryptography.

In almost all countries, the use of Bitcoin to send and receive money is permitted. In a few countries this is restricted or completely forbidden. Please seek reliable information as to the legal situation regarding Bitcoin in your country.

Yes, in Germany, crypto assets such as Bitcoin belong to the German Banking Act and are therefore considered a financial instrument. As a merchant, you can therefore accept Bitcoin without hesitation.

Stricter regulations in Germany would be equivalent to a ban, which seems more than unrealistic in the current development.