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Visa May Add Cryptocurrencies to Its Payments Network, Says CEO

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Re: Visa May Add Cryptocurrencies to Its Payments Network, Says CEO

#2
Cryptocurrency continues to gain more ground but I still have my reservations about it being the currency of the future.

If by design, cryptocurrency has a finite volume of transferrable currency, do early adopters have an unfair advantage that could potentially make the currency unusable? I don’t see how it could possibly be fair when earlier mining yielded currency more quickly.

Re: Visa May Add Cryptocurrencies to Its Payments Network, Says CEO

#3

Cryptocurrency continues to gain more ground but I still have my reservations about it being the currency of the future. If by design, cryptocurrency has a finite volume of transferrable currency, do early adopters have an unfair advantage that could potentially make the currency unusable? I don’t see how it could possibly be fair when earlier mining yielded currency more quickly.

Isn't this kinda inherent in all currencies in a way? Those born in rich families "yielded currency much more quickly".

Re: Visa May Add Cryptocurrencies to Its Payments Network, Says CEO

#4

Cryptocurrency continues to gain more ground but I still have my reservations about it being the currency of the future. If by design, cryptocurrency has a finite volume of transferrable currency, do early adopters have an unfair advantage that could potentially make the currency unusable? I don’t see how it could possibly be fair when earlier mining yielded currency more quickly.

And in the early days the cost of 1 Bitcoin was abysmal. The idea is that the harder it gets to mine the more expensive it becomes.

Re: Visa May Add Cryptocurrencies to Its Payments Network, Says CEO

#5

Cryptocurrency continues to gain more ground but I still have my reservations about it being the currency of the future. If by design, cryptocurrency has a finite volume of transferrable currency, do early adopters have an unfair advantage that could potentially make the currency unusable? I don’t see how it could possibly be fair when earlier mining yielded currency more quickly.

Not all cryptocurrencies have finite volumes by design. Ethereum, for example, currently doesn't have one. It also uses a proof-of-stake instead of proof-of-work for consensus, so even early owners of hardware don't maintain an advantage.

Re: Visa May Add Cryptocurrencies to Its Payments Network, Says CEO

#7

Cryptocurrency continues to gain more ground but I still have my reservations about it being the currency of the future. If by design, cryptocurrency has a finite volume of transferrable currency, do early adopters have an unfair advantage that could potentially make the currency unusable? I don’t see how it could possibly be fair when earlier mining yielded currency more quickly.

> cryptocurrency has a finite volume of transferrable currency

This is true of Bitcoin. Others, such as Ethereum, have a known inflation schedule, which would help alleviate the issue you mentioned as being a currency of the future. Furthermore, it is looking like the "currency of the future" may (at least in the short term), look more like a cryptocurrency that is worth $1 and is 1:1 backed by a dollar in a bank account. These are known as stablecoins and are an in-demand topic right now for central banks around the world.

Bitcoin has a property of having a known, fixed supply. This allows it to serve as a store of value. It can and is used for day-to-day transactions, but there may need to be more advancements to make these types of transactions viable long-term (such as the lightning network).

Re: Visa May Add Cryptocurrencies to Its Payments Network, Says CEO

#9

Great, let’s all accelerate climate change even faster.

I hear this argument a lot and have a genuine question.

How does Bitcoin electricity usage compare to something that achieves a similar goal?

A good example is gold—many people compare Bitcoin to gold. What are the relative electricity costs of the two, and does that justify the cost of either asset? This would take into account the electricity costs of mining, labor, supply chain, storage, etc.

Re: Visa May Add Cryptocurrencies to Its Payments Network, Says CEO

#10

Cryptocurrency continues to gain more ground but I still have my reservations about it being the currency of the future. If by design, cryptocurrency has a finite volume of transferrable currency, do early adopters have an unfair advantage that could potentially make the currency unusable? I don’t see how it could possibly be fair when earlier mining yielded currency more quickly.

Fiat currencies will probably always exist.

Digital crypto assets like Bitcoin or Ethereum will exist alongside them. Bitcoin can be an asset like gold, of which users keep a portion of their networth to protect from economic uncertainty.

Its deflationary policy may make it less usable as a currency, but at least crypto gives people choice.

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