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As someone who has never been particularly interested in cryptocurrency: what happened? I remember it being a novelty in news articles around 2012, something y

As someone who has never been particularly interested in cryptocurrency: what happened? I remember it being a novelty in news articles around 2012, something you could use in very select cases to buy things. Idea of an online currency was interesting, but not something I spent too much time thinking about. PayPal already served much the same purpose. Flash forwards to 2017 and the popularity of bitcoin is to the point where it's affecting supplies of computer hardware. Yet, it's not being treated as a currency at all, instead it's an investment. Again, what happened? I don't understand why it shifted like this, and I haven't found any particularly convincing explanations.

anm89 6y ago
If you want to understand the broader macro story around bitcoin, go listen to Lyn Alden. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_JmGLMjIOk&t=27s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_JmGLMjIOk&t=27s
- lifty 6y ago
  I love that Lyn Alden get's referenced more and more on HN. She manages to break down macro-economic thoughts and analysis in a clear and concise way. +1 for reading and listening to her materials.
- shadowofneptune 6y ago
  This is not exactly what I was looking for. Bitcoin is being treated as a risky investment, not as a reserve currency. I do not understand what led to Bitcoin becoming that instead of serving its stated goal as an online currency.
  - anm89 6y ago
    Care to share your data behind that assertion? Go look into the amount of btc being held by corporations as a treasury asset. There's a provable number and it says large financial interests are interested in hold large amounts of bitcoin as a reserve.
    - shadowofneptune 6y ago
      So companies are holding some amount of bitcoin, as the article above says. Reserve currencies are used by central banks. From a quick search, the two main reserve currencies worldwide are the US dollar and the Euro. Not sure how Bitcoin plays a role. Meanwhile, what I see when Bitcoin comes up is about speculation. That is what I am most surprised by, and I still cannot find information explaining why it happened.
      - anm89 6y ago
        So there's the narrative. You disagree with it. I don't get what more needs to be said. Go short it if you disagree.

anm89 6y ago

If you want to understand the broader macro story around bitcoin, go listen to Lyn Alden. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_JmGLMjIOk&t=27s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_JmGLMjIOk&t=27s

lifty 6y ago
I love that Lyn Alden get's referenced more and more on HN. She manages to break down macro-economic thoughts and analysis in a clear and concise way. +1 for reading and listening to her materials.
shadowofneptune 6y ago
This is not exactly what I was looking for. Bitcoin is being treated as a risky investment, not as a reserve currency. I do not understand what led to Bitcoin becoming that instead of serving its stated goal as an online currency.
- anm89 6y ago
  Care to share your data behind that assertion? Go look into the amount of btc being held by corporations as a treasury asset. There's a provable number and it says large financial interests are interested in hold large amounts of bitcoin as a reserve.
  - shadowofneptune 6y ago
    So companies are holding some amount of bitcoin, as the article above says. Reserve currencies are used by central banks. From a quick search, the two main reserve currencies worldwide are the US dollar and the Euro. Not sure how Bitcoin plays a role. Meanwhile, what I see when Bitcoin comes up is about speculation. That is what I am most surprised by, and I still cannot find information explaining why it happened.
    - anm89 6y ago
      So there's the narrative. You disagree with it. I don't get what more needs to be said. Go short it if you disagree.