Today, Bitcoin can be used for payments in many retail outlets. By the end of 2023, the number of merchants accepting BTC increased to 6,329 from 2,288. The peak of BTC payments was in September 2023. At that time, 6,590 retail outlets accepting the flagship cryptocurrency were registered. The data was provided by OpenStreetMap, an open geographic database. The analysis includes establishments where both management and customers confirmed Bitcoin payments. Currently, most places accepting BTC for goods and services are located in Central and South America. According to OpenStreetMap, there are significantly fewer such trading points in Africa and some Asian countries. In China, India, and Russia, such places are almost non-existent. As for Europe and the US, there are a sufficient number of stores accepting the first cryptocurrency. According to the map provided by OpenStreetMap, the Philippines leads in the number of trading points accepting BTC. Among Southeast Asian countries, they hold the top position in this category. Recently, representatives of the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission stated that the agency was ready to become a key player in the so-called "blockchain race." According to the authorities, this spurs the development of innovative technologies in the country. However, analytical portal Coin ATM Radar pinpoints that despite the steady growth in the price of the first cryptocurrency, there was a sharp decrease in the number of Bitcoin ATMs worldwide in 2023. However, this year may become favorable for the leading digital asset.
