Can governments not step in and put an end to the cryptocurrency madness?

I still at some point feel that what will ultimately happen is that a consortium of multinational companies will come together and issue their own cryptocurrency which is based against their stock and/or share value. Perhaps something like Facebook's Libra but it clearly needs a group of multinational companies and financial institutions backing it. In my opinion that's the future of cryptocurrency.

What I'm unsure of is how current cryptocurrencies like bitcoin fit into the picture once the above happens ? Clearly bitcoin will need to be forked and modified as time goes on and things change but I can't help but feel ultimately it will be replaced by a cryptocurrency backed by a group of companies.

It might be that a group of multinational companies device to use bitcoin as a method of exchanging their share but I suspect they'd rather just create their own competing cryptocurrency.

Also, I'm curious to see how long governments tolerate their own national fiat currencies being effectively replaced by cryptocurrency. Given it removes their control over monetary policy, oversight over what the population is spending money on and will likely make taxation near impossible if people and businesses can freely trade in crypto.

I'm sure some libertarians will see this as a good thing but equally many will view it as the erosion of democracy and a move towards a dystopian blade runner cyberpunk vision of the future!
 
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Agreed cryptos are completely pointless and hope they all die but unfortunately can't see that happening. Why anyone would want to use it I have no idea. It's all just based on speculation and people wanting to make a profit. Would much rather use and trust real established currencies.
 
A2Z said:
Why anyone would want to use it I have no idea. It's all just based on speculation and people wanting to make a profit. Would much rather use and trust real established currencies.
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There are definitely reasons you'd want to own and hold it. First and foremost as a speculative asset which could increase in value!

Also, you might want to purchase goods using it as a way of avoiding tax/transaction fees or buying items/services anonymously. With governments pushing to get rid of paper banknotes there's definitely a market niche there for something else to fill.

I actually noticed they were discussing it on television last night on the Martin Lewis show. This is usually a sign that you're near the end of a bubble when an asset is being discussed and touted on primetime television! I remember the gold price crashed pretty hard about 10-15 years ago when that was being widely promoted in the media as being the future of currency after the financial crash
 
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200sols said:
No they aren't and people who claim things like this are showing how clueless they actually are.
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I wouldn't say cryptocurrency as a concept is useless. However they need to evolve and grow into something more than they are right now to become useful.

I suspect people buying into large amounts of things like Bitcoin as a gamble based on what it could become rather than what it is right now.
 
silvagti said:
I suspect people buying into large amounts of things like Bitcoin as a gamble based on what it could become rather than what it is right now.
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People buy into bitcoin because they think its price will rise in the future, even if crypto becomes a 'safe haven' that doesn't mean it is useless. All investing is a gamble, you have low, medium and high risk. BTC is a high risk investment so you shouldn't plough your entire net worth into it but as a small part of a balanced portfolio it is a good bet.
 
Does anyone have any specific recommendations for YouTube videos that cover Bitcoin in detail? Obviously there are thousands but anything in particular that is recommended?
 
200sols said:
People buy into bitcoin because they think its price will rise in the future, even if crypto becomes a 'safe haven' that doesn't mean it is useless. All investing is a gamble, you have low, medium and high risk. BTC is a high risk investment so you shouldn't plough your entire net worth into it but as a small part of a balanced portfolio it is a good bet.
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I suppose the challenge I have is seeing how bitcoin can evolve and grow into more than it is today. I can't see it ever being a stable store of wealth or a safe haven in it's current form given it isn't backed by anything. The most likely outcome for bitcoin to my mind is that it's ultimately replaced by another cryptocurrency which is directly backed by a company/government/asset/service and offers better support as a means of exchange for trading plus a more stable value.

Bitcoin only has value whilst it's used as a means of exchange and if another superior cryptocurrency appears I can't help but feel everyone will jump ship very quickly. Especially given the number of people who only appear to have bought bitcoin for pure speculation. I suppose that's the fundamental issue I have with bitcoin is that it lacks unique value and is too easy for completing cryptocurrencies to copy and improve its featureset.

Is there a reason why those who are buying bitcoin to hold longer term feel that won't happen?
 
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A2Z said:
Agreed cryptos are completely pointless and hope they all die but unfortunately can't see that happening. Why anyone would want to use it I have no idea. It's all just based on speculation and people wanting to make a profit. Would much rather use and trust real established currencies.
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I've been kicking myself for a long time over not buying into bitcoin and last month I finally took the plunge. It's still not mainstream yet. If posters on here, a forum with more tech savvy people than most, still can't comprehend the worth and potential of bitcoin then there is still a long way to go yet.
 
Funnily enough, the energy I am 'wasting' would have been wasted any way heating my study, so not only am I profiting, but I'm not hurting the environment any more than I would have been :D
 
And another thing, whenever I get any bit coin notifications they all seem to have a slight negative spin to them ie bitcoin crashes 20% after record high.
 
siezar said:
And another thing, whenever I get any bit coin notifications they all seem to have a slight negative spin to them ie bitcoin crashes 20% after record high.
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I'd put that in the realm of responsible journalism. Too many idiots pile into things they don't understand out of pure greed without realising Bitcoin is essentially a highly speculative and volatile asset. Reminding the dear idiots in the audience that this has and can happen might be enought to discourage them from making poor choices.

Anybody reading it who knows what they're talking about to some degree will be aware of this and filter it out.
 
siezar said:
And another thing, whenever I get any bit coin notifications they all seem to have a slight negative spin to them ie bitcoin crashes 20% after record high.
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Same as everything else.

If you don't understand why it crashed after hitting a high then investing isn't for you.

It cannot just keep on going in one direction.
 
Imagine, for a second, that crypto/blockchain security was based on cars driving around the country. They didn't actually need to go anywhere (nothing was being transported), but the crypto algorithm just needed evidence that a car had driven for x amount of miles to validate the block. Call it "proof of miles driven."

People could make a ton of money just by driving their cars around 24/7. Suddenly all the roads were permanently congested and people couldn't get to work, because everybody was just out aimlessly driving around for money, all day every day.

For this to be a workable analogy you'd also have to say that cars became nearly impossible to buy because miners were buying them all up and installing driverless technology, so that they could have as many cars on the road driving about making as much money as possible.

Air quality plummeted, the roads ground to a halt, people who needed a new car for work couldn't get one, as they were all being driven around to generate crypto bucks.

This is effectively what crypto is, only using GPUs and energy instead of cars.

It's one of the most insane get-rich-quick schemes ever invented. It's one of the worst human inventions, ever.
 
On the list of 'worst human inventions ever,' Bitcoin doesn't even make the first chapter, which is basically all the different things we as a species have invented specifically to murder other people in the most excruciating ways possible.

White Phosphorous, for example, is a better candidate than imaginary money. :p
 
FoxEye said:
This is effectively what crypto is, only using GPUs and energy instead of cars.

It's one of the most insane get-rich-quick schemes ever invented. It's one of the worst human inventions, ever.
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That's the issue i have with bitcoin in that the energy expended to simply update transactions and 'mine' new coins doesn't produce anything useful.

I far prefer the concept behind something like Ethereum whereby the computational power available to the network can be utilised for other purposes.

Hence why I believe bitcoin is unsustainable in its current form unless it can evolve into something more viable and useful. I still feel that a competing cryptocurrency will eventually supersede Bitcoin though at which point it's value will collapse.
 
silvagti said:
That's the issue i have with bitcoin in that the energy expended to simply update transactions and 'mine' new coins doesn't produce anything useful.

I far prefer the concept behind something like Ethereum whereby the computational power available to the network can be utilised for other purposes.

Hence why I believe bitcoin is unsustainable in its current form unless it can evolve into something more viable and useful. I still feel that a competing cryptocurrency will eventually supersede Bitcoin though at which point it's value will collapse.
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Won't be for a long, long time if it happens, BTC has the front-runner and name advantage.

Also, when it comes to the energy requirements for mass mining BTC afaik the warehouses tend to locate to areas where the energy is renewable and sustainable, like hydro... because it's cheaper for them.
 
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