We’re excited to announce that as of today we will be accepting Bitcoin via Coinbase as one of our payment options. Woohoo!

As one of the fastest growing payment methods, Bitcoin will give more people across the world the opportunity to learn with Treehouse. Our mission is to bring affordable Technology education to people everywhere, in order to help them achieve their dreams and change the world, and we believe that Bitcoin can help us accomplish that.

Here are a few reasons why we’ve decided to accept the digital currency:

Rapid Growth

Bitcoin is undeniably changing finance and is now the fifth largest payment network in the world, with adoption increasing. Just yesterday, online travel giant Expedia announced they’ll be joining the 60,000+ retailers now accepting Bitcoin worldwide. Bitcoin price tickers are even available on Yahoo Finance and Google Finance now to meet demand.

Security

Anyone who processes credit cards on their sites will have likely experienced illicit users signing up to test credit card numbers that they’ve acquired illegally. To commit credit card fraud, all someone needs to know is a surprisingly limited amount of information, for example the credit card number and associated zip code. However, with Bitcoin you need to have access to someone’s “Wallet,” that requires a great deal more information to access and is extensively protected. Accepting Bitcoin lowers fraud rates and will help us protect our community from fraudulent signups.

Lower Fees

Accepting payments online with credit cards comes with fees, often 2-3% of the overall transaction. Bitcoin minimizes those fees, and transactions are quick and simple for all parties. This means Treehouse can spend more money on what’s important: creating more content and teaching our students the valuable technology skills they need to land their dream jobs, level-up their career, and more.

(Most importantly!) More Opportunities for the Unbanked

The reality is that most of the people in the world may not have a bank or PayPal account but they are likely to have a phone. With Bitcoin all you need is a smartphone with a Bitcoin Wallet. With this additional payment option, more people than ever will be able to join our community.

We’re excited to bring Bitcoin payments to Treehouse and to open up opportunities for more people to learn with us so we can help bring their dreams and aspirations to life!

Image: Matt Spiel