Valve has announced that it is dropping bitcoin as a payment option on Steam due to high service fees and fluctuating prices.
In a statement, Valve explained that the transaction fee charged to its customers using bitcoin has skyrocketed this year. Just last week, it became $20 per transaction. Two years ago when they first adopted bitcoin as a payment option, it was only at roughly $0.20.
"These fees result in unreasonably high costs for purchasing games when paying with Bitcoin. The high transaction fees cause even greater problems when the value of Bitcoin itself drops dramatically," Valve said in an official announcement.
The game developing company added that it has also seen an increase in volatility in the value of bitcoin, which consistently changes over short periods of time. This makes bitcoin values guaranteed only for a certain window. If, for example, an ongoing transaction is not completed within that window, the required amount to complete the purchase may also change.
According to Valve, they have seen an increasing number of customers in this state throughout the year. When this happens, Valve either refunds the overpaid amount or requires for additional payment. Both cases require another bitcoin transaction fee.
Valve said repeated incidents like these make the bitcoin "untenable." However, it is not closing any doors to the rising cryptocurrency. The company says it could still be brought back at a later date, if it stabilizes at some point.
As of press time, though, that is far from happening. The past two weeks saw the digital currency reach a series of all-time highs. From just over $9,000 last week, it is now over $16,000. That is double the amount just two weeks ago, considering it started the year at a mere $1,000.
While Valve is taking it out as a payment option, Venezuela is hoping to make one out of a new digital currency. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro hopes it will help curb the country's economic crisis.
