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Which crypto projects are providing real utility to people outside the crypto space? I can think of using bitcoin for remittances or drug purchases, but other

Which crypto projects are providing real utility to people outside the crypto space? I can think of using bitcoin for remittances or drug purchases, but other than that I have trouble thinking of compelling examples.

methodin 6y ago
Having only cursory knowledge of this space I'll take a stab at an answer: every consumer of a company that uses crypto internally. AWS doesn't provide any real utility for people outside of the AWS space except for consumers of companies that use AWS. Feel free to point out I'm wrong as again I don't follow this space in-depth.
- brokensegue 6y ago
  What companies that I might be a customer of actually use crypto.
  - luxpir 6y ago
    PayPal.
- csande17 6y ago
  The difference is that it almost never makes sense for a company to use cryptocurrency technology "internally". If you don't want to be a Bitcoin-esque distributed anonymous organization -- if you want to be able to comply with laws or sign legally-binding contracts, for example -- traditional database technology is much cheaper and easier to use. Some companies have announced cryptocurrency-related initiatives, but the only benefit to them is that lottery-like speculator behavior might pump up their stock. (See companies like Long Blockchain, formerly known as Long Island Iced Tea.)
rodiger 6y ago
Said more in another comment below but decentralized finance is pretty big. There are a lot of novel ways to deploy capital there. Check out any of the projects listed here and feel free to dig in more/ask questions: https://defipulse.com/ https://defipulse.com/
cryptoquick 6y ago
Filecoin, for one. Long-term data storage is essentially a byproduct of its mining algorithm, much like waste heat from Bitcoin miners. Also, there's utility in a trustless, predictable, uncorruptible source of scarcity. Meanwhile, the supply of gold is difficult to audit, we have no idea to what extent nation states are manipulating its supply. The value of a deflationary monetary policy cannot be understated.
- rodiger 6y ago
  Filecoin is useful, but incredibly overpriced and its model unfortunately perpetuates ponzi-like investing[0]. Also deflationary monetary policy is awful if you want people to spend money. Why buy something today if it will be cheaper tomorrow? [0] https://www.reddit.com/r/CryptoCurrency/comments/mhpaar/filecoins_fully_diluted_marketcap_is_417_billion/gt0dwpb?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3 https://www.reddit.com/r/CryptoCurrency/comments/mhpaar/file...

methodin 6y ago

Having only cursory knowledge of this space I'll take a stab at an answer: every consumer of a company that uses crypto internally. AWS doesn't provide any real utility for people outside of the AWS space except for consumers of companies that use AWS. Feel free to point out I'm wrong as again I don't follow this space in-depth.

brokensegue 6y ago
What companies that I might be a customer of actually use crypto.
- luxpir 6y ago
  PayPal.
csande17 6y ago
The difference is that it almost never makes sense for a company to use cryptocurrency technology "internally". If you don't want to be a Bitcoin-esque distributed anonymous organization -- if you want to be able to comply with laws or sign legally-binding contracts, for example -- traditional database technology is much cheaper and easier to use. Some companies have announced cryptocurrency-related initiatives, but the only benefit to them is that lottery-like speculator behavior might pump up their stock. (See companies like Long Blockchain, formerly known as Long Island Iced Tea.)

rodiger 6y ago

Said more in another comment below but decentralized finance is pretty big. There are a lot of novel ways to deploy capital there. Check out any of the projects listed here and feel free to dig in more/ask questions: https://defipulse.com/ https://defipulse.com/

cryptoquick 6y ago

Filecoin, for one. Long-term data storage is essentially a byproduct of its mining algorithm, much like waste heat from Bitcoin miners. Also, there's utility in a trustless, predictable, uncorruptible source of scarcity. Meanwhile, the supply of gold is difficult to audit, we have no idea to what extent nation states are manipulating its supply. The value of a deflationary monetary policy cannot be understated.

rodiger 6y ago
Filecoin is useful, but incredibly overpriced and its model unfortunately perpetuates ponzi-like investing[0]. Also deflationary monetary policy is awful if you want people to spend money. Why buy something today if it will be cheaper tomorrow? [0] https://www.reddit.com/r/CryptoCurrency/comments/mhpaar/filecoins_fully_diluted_marketcap_is_417_billion/gt0dwpb?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3 https://www.reddit.com/r/CryptoCurrency/comments/mhpaar/file...