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I agree with you, but there are some people around the world that don't trust their governments. A use-case most people here would agree with is in the yellow e

I agree with you, but there are some people around the world that don't trust their governments. A use-case most people here would agree with is in the yellow economic circle in Hong Kong: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_economic_circle https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_economic_circle Using a cryptocurrency is kind of like a technological band-aid to a political problem. Viewed through the lens as a form of peaceful protest against the government, it makes sense. Otherwise, it's completely your call if you want to make transactions where the receiver has no obligation to provide the product or service you paid for.

oblio 6y ago
It's a very niche use case, though. Especially for creating a new global currency, used by everyone. And those people are probably screwed anyway, unfortunately for them. If a big government hates your guts... you're not going to make it. Might be safer for them to buy gold and just bolt.
- betwixthewires 6y ago
  It is easier to carry cryptocurrency than gold while fleeing from armed men.
  - oblio 6y ago
    Agreed. How about the first point, that it solves a problem most people don't have? Why would this be a mass market product? What's the benefit for J. Random?
    - betwixthewires 6y ago
      I'm copying a comment I made earlier that answers this question: So I hate to use the word I'm about to use, because of the modern connotations associated with it, but it does apply here. There are billions of people who are abused by their government, who cannot trust their government, who's local money is debased by their government at a whim. You are privileged (there's that word) to have a government that you feel you can trust to control the value of your savings and your purchasing power. You do not see the value proposition because there is not much of one for you. Cryptocurrency doesn't exist for you. It exists for the people who do need it. And again, there are billions of people who need it, as much as half the world's population, possibly more.
      - oblio 6y ago
        I'm doubtful that it will be adopted in developing and underdeveloped countries, but it's something we will only be able to check in a few decades.
      - oblio 6y ago
        Oh, I forgot something. > whose local money is debased by their government at a whim How do you reconcile this with the wild speculation happening for Bitcoin, the only widely adopted cryptocurrency? It would definitely not be a solid investment vehicle. I mean, I understand the desire to use it out of desperation, but it's still not a solid alternative. You're just at the whims of the world's miners and speculators.
        betwixthewires 6y ago
        Well, if you look at the volatility of bitcoin in particular, you'll see that it is decreasing pretty steadily. The first big bull run was very significant, 1000x, whereas the last bull market was only about 100x. The current one who knows, but it's looking like it will be about 10x. This volatility is a part of the price discovery process for any new asset class. Fiat currency may appear stable, but it is not. It appears stable because it is used as the unit of account for all other assets in a country. In the long run, any freely floating asset will be more stable than any fiat currency managed the way modern ones are managed, via a central bank, provided that the supply change of that freely floating asset is predictable. Gold, for example, has a supply increase that is predictable. Central bank controlled fiat currencies are by definition not predictable in their supply, and this makes assets that are more suited to saving/investment, regardless of short term volatility. Nobody can empty your savings into their own pocket by printing gold or bitcoin.

oblio 6y ago

It's a very niche use case, though. Especially for creating a new global currency, used by everyone. And those people are probably screwed anyway, unfortunately for them. If a big government hates your guts... you're not going to make it. Might be safer for them to buy gold and just bolt.

betwixthewires 6y ago
It is easier to carry cryptocurrency than gold while fleeing from armed men.
- oblio 6y ago
  Agreed. How about the first point, that it solves a problem most people don't have? Why would this be a mass market product? What's the benefit for J. Random?
  - betwixthewires 6y ago
    I'm copying a comment I made earlier that answers this question: So I hate to use the word I'm about to use, because of the modern connotations associated with it, but it does apply here. There are billions of people who are abused by their government, who cannot trust their government, who's local money is debased by their government at a whim. You are privileged (there's that word) to have a government that you feel you can trust to control the value of your savings and your purchasing power. You do not see the value proposition because there is not much of one for you. Cryptocurrency doesn't exist for you. It exists for the people who do need it. And again, there are billions of people who need it, as much as half the world's population, possibly more.
    - oblio 6y ago
      I'm doubtful that it will be adopted in developing and underdeveloped countries, but it's something we will only be able to check in a few decades.
    - oblio 6y ago
      Oh, I forgot something. > whose local money is debased by their government at a whim How do you reconcile this with the wild speculation happening for Bitcoin, the only widely adopted cryptocurrency? It would definitely not be a solid investment vehicle. I mean, I understand the desire to use it out of desperation, but it's still not a solid alternative. You're just at the whims of the world's miners and speculators.
      - betwixthewires 6y ago
        Well, if you look at the volatility of bitcoin in particular, you'll see that it is decreasing pretty steadily. The first big bull run was very significant, 1000x, whereas the last bull market was only about 100x. The current one who knows, but it's looking like it will be about 10x. This volatility is a part of the price discovery process for any new asset class. Fiat currency may appear stable, but it is not. It appears stable because it is used as the unit of account for all other assets in a country. In the long run, any freely floating asset will be more stable than any fiat currency managed the way modern ones are managed, via a central bank, provided that the supply change of that freely floating asset is predictable. Gold, for example, has a supply increase that is predictable. Central bank controlled fiat currencies are by definition not predictable in their supply, and this makes assets that are more suited to saving/investment, regardless of short term volatility. Nobody can empty your savings into their own pocket by printing gold or bitcoin.