Steam Abandons Bitcoin

The Bitcoin phenomenon has been interesting, becoming one of the more notorious cryptocurrencies available. It has seen its share of tremendous fluctuations, and concerns have developed over its potential to be used for illicit activity and an economic bubble. In response, Steam announced that it would no longer accept Bitcoin as a method of payment.

According to Steam:

"Historically, the value of Bitcoin has been volatile, but the degree of volatility has become extreme in the last few months, losing as much as 25% in value over days. This creates a problem for customers trying to purchase games with Bitcoin. When checking out on Steam, a customer will transfer x amount of Bitcoin for the cost of the game plus y amount of Bitcoin to cover the transaction fee charged by the Bitcoin network.

The value of Bitcoin is only guaranteed for a certain period, so if the transaction isn't completed within that window of time, the amount of Bitcoin needed to cover the transaction can change. The amount it can change has been increasing recently to a point where it can be significantly different."

Steam has stated that numerous customers have been affected by the Bitcoin network transaction fee, which is currently high. As a result, asking customers to refund or transfer the missing balance has become an issue.

Steam has stated that they have to reevaluate whether Bitcoin "makes sense" for the Steam community, so it's possible that it will return as a payment option later.