Bitcoin Transactions Will Double By 2017, Research Finds

A new report from Juniper Research forecasts that the number of bitcoin and altcoin transactions will more than double by 2017 to 56 million, up from 24.7 million in 2014 and 18 million in 2013.

The finding is part of a new report from the market intelligence firm that analyzes the volume and value of transactions in the cryptocurrency markets and predicts the value of all bitcoin and altcoin transactions will fall by 58% in 2015, to just over $30bn.

Still, Dr Windsor Holden, head of consultancy and forecasting at Juniper, suggested that those who read the report should scrutinize its more positive conclusions, as he believes bitcoin is unlikely to gain significant transaction as a means of payment.

"I think the challenges are so great that bitcoin will struggle as an actual payment mechanism. It will struggle to go over a fairly core audience who are the very techy and the libertarians, and those who partake in nefarious activities."

For the report, Juniper used publicly available data to determine the volume and value of bitcoin, litecoin, dogecoin and auroracoin on a month-over-month basis throughout 2014.

Holden indicated that while the total value of bitcoin and altcoin transactions is likely to continue to fall, this is indicative of the recent decline in the bitcoin price.

Further, he cautioned readers not to "Believe the hype" surrounding the industry, stating that he believes the total user base for bitcoin to be smaller than advertised.

In his explanation, Holden compared bitcoin to another relatively new payment method, near-field communication in the face of changing consumer behavior.

To this point, he cited the continued reports of scams in the bitcoin industry, mentioning Hong Kong's MyCoin, which was recently revealed to have potentially absconded with roughly $8.12m in customer funds.

The full paper, titled The Future of Cryptocurrency: Bitcoin & Altcoin Impact & Opportunities 2015-2019, is now available on the company's website.