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USDC, DAI, USDT are all used more than ever, orders of magnitude more People dont have to talk about them as currencies because they just work No different th

USDC, DAI, USDT are all used more than ever, orders of magnitude more People dont have to talk about them as currencies because they just work No different than cellular reception in an underground subway, you dont have to think about it anymore

kllrnohj 5y ago
> People dont have to talk about them as currencies because they just work Well that's not really true, it was headline news when Tesla started accepting crypto payments (and then headline news when they stopped). Stores accepting crypto still makes the news, it's not common and not something that "just works." But what you can do is at least semi-reliably convert between crypto & things that stores do accept using the various conversions you listed. But you still do have to convert from crypto to a traditional currency to use it as a currency.
- vmception 5y ago
  There have been debit cards loaded with crypto for almost a decade now Your fictional higher standard of currency would say that the euro is not a currency because my transferwise debit card converts it to dollars when I spend in the US The peer to peer payment mechanism works and all crypto assets inherit that
  - deleted 5y ago
    [deleted]
cableshaft 5y ago
Yep, used USDC just last night to buy a new computer, just before this big crash happened, thankfully (since I converted some crypto to do it). Actually using that for its intended purpose.
- vmception 5y ago
  No didn't you read all the other comments, that didn't happen because nobody uses them as currencies, or it didnt happen because either the payment processor, merchant, or their daycare provider eventually converted to the state’s local fiat currency so your experience is invalid /s
- zaphar 5y ago
  That's like saying I payed for my new house with stocks. Which is not the same thing as stocks being a currency. What actually happened is that you liquidated some crypto and used the proceeds to buy your new computer. You even say that directly in your parenthetical. (since I converted some crypto to do it)
  - cableshaft 5y ago
    I converted from one form of cryptocurrency to another cryptocurrency (USDC is USDCoin, a Stablecoin). I was paying on NewEgg using their BitPay method, which supports payment with only the following cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Wrapped Bitcoin, Dogecoin, and 5 stablecoins (GUSD, USDC, PAX, DAI, and BUSD). I have Bitcoin and could have paid directly with that, but I wanted to keep holding it and pay with Litecoin. So I converted that to USDC (for free, but I will have to pay taxes on the gains next year since every conversion or purchase is a taxable event in crypto in the US), and then sent that to Bitpay. So yes, I still maintain I used USDC for its intended purpose. I did, however, do what you said and liquidated some Ethereum to fiat several years ago (right at the previous bull run's top, by happenstance, got super lucky then) to pay for the downpayment on my home. I would have paid with it directly if I could but there was just no mechanism for it, at least not back then.
marcusverus 5y ago
> USDC, DAI, USDT are all used more than ever, orders of magnitude more Even these cryptos aren't being used as currencies per se. They're popular, sure, but they're popular because A) they allow traders to move funds between crypto 'investments' without converting to fiat (i.e. without triggering cap gains), and B) They allow investors to "avoid market volatility" (but in a manner far riskier than fiat, given that even DAI or USDT could go to zero tomorrow). ...but they're still not currencies. Nobody is buying a hamburger with DAI.
- nostrademons 5y ago
  If the trader is being honest, converting cryptocurrencies to stablecoins is a taxable event triggering capital gains. The IRS considers any exchange of one cryptocurrency for another to be a sale of a capital asset and purchase of another.
  - erosenbe0 5y ago
    Yes. They are assets and you must pay tax every time you swap them or even use them to make a purchase. It's like making a purchase with Apple stock or swapping Apple stock for Google stock. Pay tax.
  - sizzle 5y ago
    How will the government track and get their dues?
    - vmception 5y ago
      Typically they use account information from the exchanges and follow that onchain But they generally rely on individuals to report accurately. Obviously wage-earners arent used to that as their employers withhold money for taxes and report to the IRS so this crowd may find this new found freedom to be foreign and a chance to “get away with” something, but everyone else has lived in a world where they report their taxes voluntarily and accurately
- nikanj 5y ago
Animats 5y ago
USDT is a concern, because it probably can't survive a big net outflow. Right now, dumping Bitcoin and buying, say, yuan is something a hedge fund might do. Or may have been doing over the last few weeks. What happens when some trader cashes out a few billion dollars in USDT to buy yuan? Coinbase has to wire transfer out that cash.

kllrnohj 5y ago

> People dont have to talk about them as currencies because they just work Well that's not really true, it was headline news when Tesla started accepting crypto payments (and then headline news when they stopped). Stores accepting crypto still makes the news, it's not common and not something that "just works." But what you can do is at least semi-reliably convert between crypto & things that stores do accept using the various conversions you listed. But you still do have to convert from crypto to a traditional currency to use it as a currency.

vmception 5y ago
There have been debit cards loaded with crypto for almost a decade now Your fictional higher standard of currency would say that the euro is not a currency because my transferwise debit card converts it to dollars when I spend in the US The peer to peer payment mechanism works and all crypto assets inherit that
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]

cableshaft 5y ago

Yep, used USDC just last night to buy a new computer, just before this big crash happened, thankfully (since I converted some crypto to do it). Actually using that for its intended purpose.

vmception 5y ago
No didn't you read all the other comments, that didn't happen because nobody uses them as currencies, or it didnt happen because either the payment processor, merchant, or their daycare provider eventually converted to the state’s local fiat currency so your experience is invalid /s
zaphar 5y ago
That's like saying I payed for my new house with stocks. Which is not the same thing as stocks being a currency. What actually happened is that you liquidated some crypto and used the proceeds to buy your new computer. You even say that directly in your parenthetical. (since I converted some crypto to do it)
- cableshaft 5y ago
  I converted from one form of cryptocurrency to another cryptocurrency (USDC is USDCoin, a Stablecoin). I was paying on NewEgg using their BitPay method, which supports payment with only the following cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Wrapped Bitcoin, Dogecoin, and 5 stablecoins (GUSD, USDC, PAX, DAI, and BUSD). I have Bitcoin and could have paid directly with that, but I wanted to keep holding it and pay with Litecoin. So I converted that to USDC (for free, but I will have to pay taxes on the gains next year since every conversion or purchase is a taxable event in crypto in the US), and then sent that to Bitpay. So yes, I still maintain I used USDC for its intended purpose. I did, however, do what you said and liquidated some Ethereum to fiat several years ago (right at the previous bull run's top, by happenstance, got super lucky then) to pay for the downpayment on my home. I would have paid with it directly if I could but there was just no mechanism for it, at least not back then.

marcusverus 5y ago

> USDC, DAI, USDT are all used more than ever, orders of magnitude more Even these cryptos aren't being used as currencies per se. They're popular, sure, but they're popular because A) they allow traders to move funds between crypto 'investments' without converting to fiat (i.e. without triggering cap gains), and B) They allow investors to "avoid market volatility" (but in a manner far riskier than fiat, given that even DAI or USDT could go to zero tomorrow). ...but they're still not currencies. Nobody is buying a hamburger with DAI.

nostrademons 5y ago
If the trader is being honest, converting cryptocurrencies to stablecoins is a taxable event triggering capital gains. The IRS considers any exchange of one cryptocurrency for another to be a sale of a capital asset and purchase of another.
- erosenbe0 5y ago
  Yes. They are assets and you must pay tax every time you swap them or even use them to make a purchase. It's like making a purchase with Apple stock or swapping Apple stock for Google stock. Pay tax.
- sizzle 5y ago
  How will the government track and get their dues?
  - vmception 5y ago
    Typically they use account information from the exchanges and follow that onchain But they generally rely on individuals to report accurately. Obviously wage-earners arent used to that as their employers withhold money for taxes and report to the IRS so this crowd may find this new found freedom to be foreign and a chance to “get away with” something, but everyone else has lived in a world where they report their taxes voluntarily and accurately
nikanj 5y ago

Animats 5y ago

USDT is a concern, because it probably can't survive a big net outflow. Right now, dumping Bitcoin and buying, say, yuan is something a hedge fund might do. Or may have been doing over the last few weeks. What happens when some trader cashes out a few billion dollars in USDT to buy yuan? Coinbase has to wire transfer out that cash.