Trust. Or the lack thereof. Bitcoin today has a market cap of $162 billion. If it was "managed" by a central intermediary, what are the odds that they wouldn't

Trust. Or the lack thereof. Bitcoin today has a market cap of $162 billion. If it was "managed" by a central intermediary, what are the odds that they wouldn't turn to exploitative behavior? Whatever those odds are, they're infinitely greater than the 0% you get from a decentralized system. And longevity. So long as any group of people has interest in Bitcoin (and there is no digital apocalypse) it will continue to exist -- as will any decentralized currency. By contrast companies, and even nations, come and go rapidly. If a coin is deemed a viable commodity then it can, and likely will, outlast the original creator of it. Anything dependent upon a centralized system tends to die when that centralized system does.