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No, an authoritarian government can always make it illegal to own crypto and/or to exchange crypto to fiat.

• plsbenice34 5y ago
  Unenforceable laws aren't that relevant here
• smeej 5y ago
  But can they make it impossible? That's the important question. The hope of people who believe in a future switch to crypto as the monetary standard are hoping the technology is strong enough to withstand enforcement of laws against it, hoping that all the laws in the world won't be able to stop it. Whether that happens remains to be seen, but it's important to understand that this is part of the hope and the goal.
• game_the0ry 5y ago
  Nearly impossible to fully enforce via tech - there are many ways around a tech ban. Decentralized exchanges, TOR, VPNs, etc. can get a round a tech ban. A policy ban is also an implicit admission that the government's position on money and finance is weak - if the US bans bitcoin, that implies that the dollar can't compete against bitcoin on its own merit, without the enforcement of violence.
  • JumpCrisscross 5y ago
    > policy ban is also an implicit admission that the government's position on money and finance is weak Every country with capital controls already does this. Most of them (e.g. Egypt, Iraq, Bangladesh and China) hand banned or heavily restricted (e.g. India) crypto. The same way they restrict hard currencies. America has an open capital account, so the threat is less present.