7 ms·

I think it's difficult to call something 100% speculative or 100% not. Some individuals may buy something for speculation, while others may desire the utility.

I think it's difficult to call something 100% speculative or 100% not. Some individuals may buy something for speculation, while others may desire the utility. You can speculate on the price of soy beans (many do), but people also buy soy beans to use. There are individuals who get some utility out of bitcoin (international money transfers etc.)

melenaboija 4y ago
> There are individuals who get some utility out of bitcoin (international money transfers etc.) What do you mean with money transfers?
- kareemsabri 4y ago
  I mean that when I've asked people what utility they get out of blockchain they mention the ability to send BTC overseas quickly and easily, to countries in which it's difficult to send money. I assume they're not lying about that use case.
  - melenaboija 4y ago
    They send nothing as BTC is not located anywhere. They buy and sell btc with fiat currencies, that is all.
  - btilly 4y ago
    In practice transferwise (now wise) is able to transfer money more easily and with much lower fees. At least if your needs match normal consumer needs. This switches if you need to transfer millions of dollars, or you're trying to pay for something illegal. Which is why one of Bitcoin's significant real-world uses is for ransomware. It does indeed make it easy to launder millions of dollars of money across national boundaries. https://www.npr.org/2021/06/10/1004874311/how-bitcoin-has-fueled-ransomware-attacks https://www.npr.org/2021/06/10/1004874311/how-bitcoin-has-fu...
    - int_19h 4y ago
      In practice there are things such as country-wide sanctions that make "regular" services not particularly reliable in some cases.
      - 1986 4y ago
        So the utility of crypto is to violate sanctions?
        djbebs 4y ago
        The utility of crypto is to transact without restrictions yes.
        int_19h 4y ago
        Among other things, sure. Given how many of them are in place for no good reason (e.g. Cuba) while significantly hindering quality of life for innocent people, I consider that a net positive.
deleted 4y ago
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melenaboija 4y ago

> There are individuals who get some utility out of bitcoin (international money transfers etc.) What do you mean with money transfers?

kareemsabri 4y ago
I mean that when I've asked people what utility they get out of blockchain they mention the ability to send BTC overseas quickly and easily, to countries in which it's difficult to send money. I assume they're not lying about that use case.
- melenaboija 4y ago
  They send nothing as BTC is not located anywhere. They buy and sell btc with fiat currencies, that is all.
- btilly 4y ago
  In practice transferwise (now wise) is able to transfer money more easily and with much lower fees. At least if your needs match normal consumer needs. This switches if you need to transfer millions of dollars, or you're trying to pay for something illegal. Which is why one of Bitcoin's significant real-world uses is for ransomware. It does indeed make it easy to launder millions of dollars of money across national boundaries. https://www.npr.org/2021/06/10/1004874311/how-bitcoin-has-fueled-ransomware-attacks https://www.npr.org/2021/06/10/1004874311/how-bitcoin-has-fu...
  - int_19h 4y ago
    In practice there are things such as country-wide sanctions that make "regular" services not particularly reliable in some cases.
    - 1986 4y ago
      So the utility of crypto is to violate sanctions?
      - djbebs 4y ago
        The utility of crypto is to transact without restrictions yes.
      - int_19h 4y ago
        Among other things, sure. Given how many of them are in place for no good reason (e.g. Cuba) while significantly hindering quality of life for innocent people, I consider that a net positive.

deleted 4y ago

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