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if you didn't dealt with this you can't understand, but simply put, 1 week of pay could be toilet paper next week(s), as it happened in Venezuela. In my countr

if you didn't dealt with this you can't understand, but simply put, 1 week of pay could be toilet paper next week(s), as it happened in Venezuela. In my country some years ago, in a time of crisis for example the government locked all foreign currency in banks, and auto exchanged it for the national currency, at a rate set by them, it was robbery basically, prices would jump up like 25% day to day, so the national current was worthless, oh, they did the same with all the private owned gold in banks or so they could grab, sold for national currency, same scenario I think it happened in Basil too, government locking money in banks.

solaarphunk 9y ago
.... but bitcoin frequently jumps 25% a day on NON-domestic news.... how is it a better store of value?
- lloeki 9y ago
  > .... but bitcoin frequently jumps 25% a day on NON-domestic news.... how is it a better store of value? Z$ record inflation was 79,600,000,000% a month[0] before it disappeared. Bitcoin's short term volatility looks quite manageable in comparison. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperinflation_in_Zimbabwe#Inflation_rate https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperinflation_in_Zimbabwe#Inf...
- dragonwriter 9y ago
  Historically, Bitcoin has had high short-run volatility but also strong longer-term appreciation trend. That means it's been a good store of value, but not one you want, ideally, to rely on in situations where you might want money on short notice with little control of timing. (Whether it's reasonable to project that past behavior into the future is another discussion, of course.)
- shanusmagnus 9y ago
  I love when my store of value jumps 25% in a day.
- nerdponx 9y ago
  That still beats hyperinflation or the currency collapsing outright. Also, what other investment options do you have? I have no idea how easy or hard it is to buy Vanguard shares on short notice in Zimbabwe.
  - charlesdm 9y ago
    Probably not hard for the elite or upper class, if you have access to the internet and an interactive brokers account.
  - taejo 9y ago
    There hasn't been hyperinflation in Zimbabwe for years. The main currency is USD, with some parallel use of South African Rand, Botswana Pula and Zambian Kwatsha.
  - erikpukinskis 9y ago
    You can’t store Vanguard shares in your brain.
- jstanley 9y ago
  No it doesn't. It hasn't done for a long time.
- cxspoon 9y ago
  bitcoin = fluctuation = jumps up and down prices = inflation = jumps up and up
  - xadhominemx 9y ago
    if you need bitcoin to buy toilet paper, why not just buy toilet paper
    - thephyber 9y ago
      With what? Zimbabwe has been in a hyperinflation downward spiral for almost two decades now[1]. If you hold your Zimbabwe Dollars overnight, they are only worth a fraction of what they were the day before. In hyper-inflationary periods, people would rather buy goods immediately than hold onto cash because the cash depreciates FAR faster than commodities. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperinflation_in_Zimbabwe#/media/File:ZWDvsUSDchart.svg https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperinflation_in_Zimbabwe#/me...
      - CamelCaseName 9y ago
        His joke is that Zimbabwean dollars are toilet paper.
        xadhominemx 9y ago
        No, I wasn't joking. I was asking sincerely, if you're reason for holding bitcoin is that you want to be able to buy goods next week without worrying about inflation, why not just buy the goods now and avoid the risk of owning bitcoin.
        craigc 9y ago
        But if you spend all your money on goods and then you need something else in a week or two then what do you use to buy it? Sell/trade the goods you already purchased? I think it makes sense to hold on to some form of currency.
- bdcravens 9y ago
  No it doesn't. It has been several years since that was true. Big jumps these days are 5-10%. The recent drop during the BCH pump and dump didn't even get to 25% in day. I would encourage you to consult charts, as most of those memes are out of date.
  - sillysaurus3 9y ago
    3 days ago till now was a 25% jump in price. I was on record saying it was a good idea to buy in at $5800: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15679776 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15679776 it's currently $7200. And 60 days ago I said to buy in at $3k: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15259134 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15259134 After Bitcoin crashes, it's always a good idea to buy. A 25% fluctuation is still the norm. Sure, it takes 3 days rather than 1 day, but it's not mistaken.
- mr_toad 9y ago
  That's the the opposite of inflation. Relative to bitcoin, prices of goods and services are decreasing.
drharby 9y ago
...PH?
brettfarrow 9y ago
That's definitely a real concern for some countries, but Zimbabwe has only used other currencies for years. When I went 5 years ago, you could pay for your entrance visa in either USD, GBP, or EUR. All large grocery stores had that day's exchange rates posted near the entrance in USD, ZAR, and at least one other currency (GBP, EUR, or Botswana pula are the ones I remember).
- sangnoir 9y ago
  Things have changed in the 5 years - Zimbabwe now has a (quasi)currency - the "Bond notes" which are officially 1:1 with the USD. Getting access to cash in this quasi-currency is hard, getting it in USD is well-neigh impossible^w^w expensive.
alexasmyths 9y ago
You can go anywhere in the world and use USD, or exchange it for local currency. BTC is accepted pretty much nowhere, and it's difficult to exchange for any given currency. I can't fathom for a second why BTC would be more popular than BTC at least on those terms. Exchanges may be more readily available for BTC, as USD movement is controlled, you need banks etc.. Especially given the level of technology required ... I don't think that Zimbabwe is realistically the driving force here.

solaarphunk 9y ago

.... but bitcoin frequently jumps 25% a day on NON-domestic news.... how is it a better store of value?

lloeki 9y ago
> .... but bitcoin frequently jumps 25% a day on NON-domestic news.... how is it a better store of value? Z$ record inflation was 79,600,000,000% a month[0] before it disappeared. Bitcoin's short term volatility looks quite manageable in comparison. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperinflation_in_Zimbabwe#Inflation_rate https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperinflation_in_Zimbabwe#Inf...
dragonwriter 9y ago
Historically, Bitcoin has had high short-run volatility but also strong longer-term appreciation trend. That means it's been a good store of value, but not one you want, ideally, to rely on in situations where you might want money on short notice with little control of timing. (Whether it's reasonable to project that past behavior into the future is another discussion, of course.)
shanusmagnus 9y ago
I love when my store of value jumps 25% in a day.
nerdponx 9y ago
That still beats hyperinflation or the currency collapsing outright. Also, what other investment options do you have? I have no idea how easy or hard it is to buy Vanguard shares on short notice in Zimbabwe.
- charlesdm 9y ago
  Probably not hard for the elite or upper class, if you have access to the internet and an interactive brokers account.
- taejo 9y ago
  There hasn't been hyperinflation in Zimbabwe for years. The main currency is USD, with some parallel use of South African Rand, Botswana Pula and Zambian Kwatsha.
- erikpukinskis 9y ago
  You can’t store Vanguard shares in your brain.
jstanley 9y ago
No it doesn't. It hasn't done for a long time.
cxspoon 9y ago
bitcoin = fluctuation = jumps up and down prices = inflation = jumps up and up
- xadhominemx 9y ago
  if you need bitcoin to buy toilet paper, why not just buy toilet paper
  - thephyber 9y ago
    With what? Zimbabwe has been in a hyperinflation downward spiral for almost two decades now[1]. If you hold your Zimbabwe Dollars overnight, they are only worth a fraction of what they were the day before. In hyper-inflationary periods, people would rather buy goods immediately than hold onto cash because the cash depreciates FAR faster than commodities. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperinflation_in_Zimbabwe#/media/File:ZWDvsUSDchart.svg https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperinflation_in_Zimbabwe#/me...
    - CamelCaseName 9y ago
      His joke is that Zimbabwean dollars are toilet paper.
      - xadhominemx 9y ago
        No, I wasn't joking. I was asking sincerely, if you're reason for holding bitcoin is that you want to be able to buy goods next week without worrying about inflation, why not just buy the goods now and avoid the risk of owning bitcoin.
        craigc 9y ago
        But if you spend all your money on goods and then you need something else in a week or two then what do you use to buy it? Sell/trade the goods you already purchased? I think it makes sense to hold on to some form of currency.
bdcravens 9y ago
No it doesn't. It has been several years since that was true. Big jumps these days are 5-10%. The recent drop during the BCH pump and dump didn't even get to 25% in day. I would encourage you to consult charts, as most of those memes are out of date.
- sillysaurus3 9y ago
  3 days ago till now was a 25% jump in price. I was on record saying it was a good idea to buy in at $5800: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15679776 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15679776 it's currently $7200. And 60 days ago I said to buy in at $3k: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15259134 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15259134 After Bitcoin crashes, it's always a good idea to buy. A 25% fluctuation is still the norm. Sure, it takes 3 days rather than 1 day, but it's not mistaken.
mr_toad 9y ago
That's the the opposite of inflation. Relative to bitcoin, prices of goods and services are decreasing.

drharby 9y ago

...PH?

brettfarrow 9y ago

That's definitely a real concern for some countries, but Zimbabwe has only used other currencies for years. When I went 5 years ago, you could pay for your entrance visa in either USD, GBP, or EUR. All large grocery stores had that day's exchange rates posted near the entrance in USD, ZAR, and at least one other currency (GBP, EUR, or Botswana pula are the ones I remember).

sangnoir 9y ago
Things have changed in the 5 years - Zimbabwe now has a (quasi)currency - the "Bond notes" which are officially 1:1 with the USD. Getting access to cash in this quasi-currency is hard, getting it in USD is well-neigh impossible^w^w expensive.

alexasmyths 9y ago

You can go anywhere in the world and use USD, or exchange it for local currency. BTC is accepted pretty much nowhere, and it's difficult to exchange for any given currency. I can't fathom for a second why BTC would be more popular than BTC at least on those terms. Exchanges may be more readily available for BTC, as USD movement is controlled, you need banks etc.. Especially given the level of technology required ... I don't think that Zimbabwe is realistically the driving force here.