Because most people are risk averse (and past performance is not an indicator of future results), 'lazy' and dislike complexity. If I were European and wanted

Because most people are risk averse (and past performance is not an indicator of future results), 'lazy' and dislike complexity. If I were European and wanted to buy some stuff from China later in the year, the rational thing to do (given an expected Euro fall) would be to change to Yuan today. If you take this to it's logical end (extreme) then I would be changing all my money, and become a currency trader. To me, the dual functions of BTC as an asset and a transfer mechanism are almost unconnected, often with opposing interests. I often hear how much BTC would be worth if it were used for X% of trade; it's rubbish, that only applies IF people hold BTC for any significant amount of time, which is at least not a necessary part of the equation.