The 19th century was the Wild West age of equity investing. Some of these stocks represented far-sighted projects halfway around the world, some were thinly dis

The 19th century was the Wild West age of equity investing. Some of these stocks represented far-sighted projects halfway around the world, some were thinly disguised gangsterism and drug pushing, and some were outright frauds. Fortunes were made and lost with little or no government intervention. That period of history did not last, and contrary to the assumptions of the article I doubt it will this time. There’s a saying “Don’t confuse neglect with empowerment.” The moment that digital currencies get important enough you’d best believe they’ll be regulated. This isn’t necessarily bad news for digital currencies: there’s a lot more money to be made from stocks these days than there was 200 years ago.