Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Ask HN: What real world problem does cryptocurrency solve?

news.ycombinator.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

61–70 of 143 posts

Re: Ask HN: What real world problem does cryptocurrency solve?

#61

Post by janandonly »

With inflation at 7.5%, you lose half your money in 9 years.

The only way to outperform that consistently, that I have found, is to Dollar Coast Average: to buy small amounts of Bitcoin per day/week/month.

For example: if You start on 01/01/2019 and put in $10 every week, then by now you would have put $1630 into bitcoin. But there is the thing: the value of that stash of bitcoins today is .... $6,330.56

See how this fights inflation?

You can make your own calculations easily here: https://www.bitcoindollarcostaverage.com

Re: Ask HN: What real world problem does cryptocurrency solve?

#62

Post by xiphias2 »

For me the big deal in 2013 was currency devaluation of CHF on 1 day (I thought Swiss Frank is safe from it because it's a direct democracy), and the banks taking the pensioners money in Cyprus. That's when I started understanding that the money that I have in the bank is not mine, I'm just a creditor.

Bitcoin solves both of these problems, the code really does what the whitepaper says, I can read it and understand a big part of it (there are a few difficult parts for me).

Re: Ask HN: What real world problem does cryptocurrency solve?

#63

Post by uthmancodex »

I'm from India and I get paid in crypto for my dev work through USDC. I never speculate in other currencies.

1. I don't know of any other way send and receive USD(USDC) anywhere in the world with instant settlement for 2. Good ways to earn yield on USDC on exchanges and smart contracts.

Re: Ask HN: What real world problem does cryptocurrency solve?

#64

Post by krsdcbl »

malsuwaidi wrote: post #31
sjducb wrote: post #16

- The currency of my country is collapsing, I need to buy something which has a value unconnected to my country. - My country imposes export controls on foreign currency. I want to move my money out of my country. - I am unbanked and want to buy a good or service on the internet. - I do not trust the counterparty that I am dealing with on the internet. Using cryptocurrency means that my maximum loss is the vavlu of t…

PayPal for b2b transactions, Transferwise and similar services for cheaper remittance transfers. Crypto takes electronic payments and adds an ungodly layer of complexity to them.

I feel like paypal is, quite in the contrary, the best example of why you do might want crypto.

Background: my mother had her account and assets frozen for a crazy long time after changing her name. Turns out accounts are bound to your name only, and support is unhelpful at best, so when her business started turning profit and she wanted to change her private acc to business they locked up her funds and refused to process the needed papers, citing she is not the account holder (despite sending ample proof). it's been a nightmare getting someone on the phone who was willing to clear it up.

Individual experience, but paypal to me has ever since been a prime example of why you might not want to use a large private corp for money transfers

Re: Ask HN: What real world problem does cryptocurrency solve?

#65

Post by cja »

ruuda wrote: post #37

Scott Alexander recently ran a grants program ( https://astralcodexten.substack.com/p/so-you-want-to-run-a-m... ) and wrote this about the experience: > Then you have to actually give people money. > > You know how, whenever there’s a debate about cryptocurrency, some crypto fanboy gushes about how it makes sending money so much easier? And if you’re like me, you think “yes, but right now you can just enter a number…

Doesn't Transferwise work in the US?

Re: Ask HN: What real world problem does cryptocurrency solve?

#67

Post by Ekaros »

sjducb wrote: post #16

- The currency of my country is collapsing, I need to buy something which has a value unconnected to my country. - My country imposes export controls on foreign currency. I want to move my money out of my country. - I am unbanked and want to buy a good or service on the internet. - I do not trust the counterparty that I am dealing with on the internet. Using cryptocurrency means that my maximum loss is the vavlu of t…

>- The currency of my country is collapsing, I need to buy something which has a value unconnected to my country.

>- My country imposes export controls on foreign currency. I want to move my money out of my country.

Never understood who is the counter-party in these scenarios. Someone must sell you the crypto for seemingly worthless local currency. (Unless you somehow smuggle mining equipment in and buy local electricity)

Who would make that trade? Specially if currency was collapsing or not usable.

Re: Ask HN: What real world problem does cryptocurrency solve?

#68

Post by melony »

sjducb wrote: post #16

- The currency of my country is collapsing, I need to buy something which has a value unconnected to my country. - My country imposes export controls on foreign currency. I want to move my money out of my country. - I am unbanked and want to buy a good or service on the internet. - I do not trust the counterparty that I am dealing with on the internet. Using cryptocurrency means that my maximum loss is the vavlu of t…

You forgot the most important use case: you want to build fintech services and applications, but you don't want to deal with almost a century worth of compliance and a tech stack built on rotten foundations and middleman rentseeking.

Re: Ask HN: What real world problem does cryptocurrency solve?

#69

Post by gfldex »

The best dollar bills are printed in North Korea. Forgery (but not fraut) becomes the default with crypto. You can create money without a government charter. However, it is to expensive for the forger to make a profit.

With fiat book money any payment processor (banks, CC, paypal) can create dept and thus money. We have to hold a gun against their heads and never look away to make sure that they don't cheat. Crypto solves that problem.

Please note, that you asked for solution. Crypto is creating way more problems then it solves. The VISA Network is processing 2G transactions per day. With crypto you can be happy if you get beyond 100k per day. There is better reasons to burn fossil fuel, etc. pp.

Re: Ask HN: What real world problem does cryptocurrency solve?

#70

Post by kabes »

ruuda wrote: post #37

Scott Alexander recently ran a grants program ( https://astralcodexten.substack.com/p/so-you-want-to-run-a-m... ) and wrote this about the experience: > Then you have to actually give people money. > > You know how, whenever there’s a debate about cryptocurrency, some crypto fanboy gushes about how it makes sending money so much easier? And if you’re like me, you think “yes, but right now you can just enter a number…

Blockchain only solves the issue of a distributed system without trust. None of the issues Scott mentioned are inherent to a centralized, trust based system. And some exist just as much in crypto space (wrong bank account number -> wrong wallet address and you also pay a fee for transfers)
Post reply on HN