Accepting Crypto for Subscriptions: A New Frontier for SaaS Billing

The crypto subscription market is expanding, but faces a key limitation: blockchain isn’t built for recurring payments. SaaS businesses depend on stable, scheduled billing — something cryptocurrencies don’t support natively.

In this article, we’ll cover:

▪️ Why the traditional pull payment model (like Visa) doesn’t work in Web3, where push payments dominate. 

▪️ What alternative solutions exist. 

▪️ Why monthly crypto payments in BTC can disrupt cash flow — and why the focus is shifting to stablecoins. 

▪️ Which businesses can benefit most from crypto-based billing.

Why Subscriptions Work for SaaS

The software-as-a-service (SaaS) model transformed one-time software purchases into predictable, recurring revenue.

😎 Clients don’t pay $1,000 upfront for a boxed decision — they pay $20 per month. 

😎 Businesses gain stable MRR (monthly recurring revenue), simplifying budget, marketing, and development planning.

The core of SaaS is automatic monthly billing. A client enters card details once, and the system (Stripe, PayPal, etc.) charges the amount every month.

However, traditional acquiring has serious drawbacks:

❌ High fees: 3–5% plus 1–2% for cross-border payments and currency conversion.

❌ Geoblocks: services like Stripe don’t work in many Asian, African, and Latin American countries.

❌ Chargebacks: a forgetful client can reverse the payment, causing direct losses.

❌ High-risk category: banks may refuse service or freeze 10–15% of turnover for six months as a rolling reserve.

Conclusion: crypto subscriptions solve these issues — global payments, low fees, and no chargebacks. But one major challenge remains.

How to Organize Monthly Crypto Payments

There are several ways to automate monthly crypto payments.

Crypto Invoicing: Manual Management

The simplest, but least effective option.

How it works: when the payment due date approaches, your billing system generates a cryptocurrency invoice and sends it to the client via email.

Pros:

✅ Easy to implement — no need for complex smart contracts.

Cons:

❌ Poor user experience — low repeat payment conversion.

❌ Clients forget, get distracted, or miss the email.

❌ This isn’t true billing, but manual collection via crypto invoicing.

Deposit Balance: The Mobile Operator Model

A more viable approach, used by exchanges and analytics platforms.

How it works: Instead of a fixed subscription, clients top up an internal balance — for example, $100 or $200. The service then deducts $20 per month automatically.

Pros: 

✅ Payments are recurring as long as the balance has funds.

✅ Smooth user experience — no manual renewals.

Cons: 

❌ Users must lock funds in advance and trust your platform.

❌ Risk of custodial loss if the service is hacked.

Smart Contracts: True Recurring Crypto Payments

The most advanced and scalable solution. Based on token standards like ERC-20 or BEP-20, using the approve() function.

How it works:

1️⃣ When placing an order, the client signs one transaction — approve().

2️⃣ This authorizes the smart contract to debit a specified amount of tokens (for example, up to 20 USDC) from the client’s wallet. The time period — month, quarter, etc. — is defined in the contract logic.

3️⃣ On the payment date, the billing contract automatically calls transferFrom() and withdraws the 20 USDC.

The client takes no further action. It’s a full pull-payment model implemented through push technology — the foundation of true crypto subscriptions.

Pros: 

✅ Seamless user experience and full automation.

✅ Non-custodial — funds stay in the client’s wallet until payment.

Cons: 

❌ High technical demands.

❌ A single flaw or vulnerability in the contract’s withdrawal logic could let attackers drain the wallets of all users who have approved access.

Push vs. Pull Technology

Traditional banking systems work on a pull model — you authorize a provider (like Stripe or Visa) to withdraw funds from your account automatically.

Cryptocurrency wallets such as MetaMask or Ledger use a push model — like a locked safe. Funds can only leave with the user’s direct approval and signed transaction.

This difference disrupts the SaaS model. You can’t automatically charge a client 20 USDC each month based on one prior consent. The client must manually log in, connect their wallet, and send the payment every 30 days.

Imagine manually paying for Netflix, Spotify, or cloud storage on the first of every month — most users would cancel after a couple of billing cycles. 

That’s why businesses need true recurring crypto payments, not monthly reminders.

What’s the Best Currency to Accept Payments In?

Once your crypto billing is set up, the key question is — which currency should you use?

Many businesses consider BTC or ETH, but these aren’t practical for SaaS.

Example:

Your subscription costs $30 — that’s 0.01 ETH. A client signs up, and a month later the ETH price rises, making the same 0.01 ETH worth $45. The client dislikes the increased price and cancels the subscription. Conversely, if ETH falls, you receive $15 instead of $30.

In SaaS, predictability is critical. That’s why 99% of crypto billing services work only with stablecoins — USDT, USDC, or DAI.

It’s best for your MRR to be dollar-denominated: the client pays 20 USDC, you receive 20 USDC (minus gas). There’s no exchange rate risk. Monthly crypto payments must remain stable; otherwise, the unit economics fail.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Crypto Subscriptions

Crypto Payments: A Promise or a Working Tool?

Crypto subscriptions are specialized but effective. They are not yet ready to replace Visa or PayPal for mass B2C markets (like Netflix), as the user experience is still complex.

They are already practical in these areas:

1️⃣ High-Risk SaaS: Projects considered toxic by banks.

2️⃣ Web3 projects: analytical dashboards, NFT tools, trading bots — recurring crypto payments are standard.

3️⃣ Global B2B SaaS: Companies selling software worldwide can avoid SWIFT delays and fees. Crypto invoicing (for B2B) or smart contracts offer reliable solutions for B2B crypto subscriptions.

For businesses constrained by traditional fintech, implementing a reliable crypto monthly payment system is the only way to scale globally.

FAQ

What are crypto subscriptions?

Crypto subscriptions let companies — mainly SaaS — automatically accept recurring crypto payments in cryptocurrency. Instead of charging a bank card, the system uses deposit balances or smart contracts that receive the customer’s permission to debit stablecoins (USDT, USDC) from a non-custodial wallet at a set time.

How do recurring crypto payments work?

True recurring crypto payments rely on smart contracts. The customer signs a single approve() transaction, authorizing the contract to debit a set amount (e.g., 20 USDC) each month. When the payment is due, the contract automatically calls transferFrom() and deducts the subscription fee without further action from the customer.

What is crypto invoicing?

Crypto invoicing is issuing invoices for goods or services in digital coins. For subscriptions, it’s semi-automated: the system generates a cryptocurrency invoice (e.g., by email), but the client must manually open it, copy the address, and send the payment from their wallet.

How to issue an invoice in cryptocurrency?

Two options exist:

1️⃣ Manual: prepare a PDF invoice showing the amount in USDT/USDC and your wallet address. 

2️⃣ Automated via crypto payment gateway: the service generates a unique payment page, tracks network transactions, and signals your backend when the payment is completed.

What is the difficulty of monthly crypto payments?

The challenge lies in blockchain’s push architecture. Unlike banks (pull model), a crypto wallet requires the user’s active approval for each withdrawal. To automate monthly crypto payments, businesses must either have clients top up internal balances or implement smart contracts that safely authorize recurring crypto payments.