The experiment is over. We will pay back everyone we can. We are not making money from this. And it's down.
Couldn’t one somehow decentralize a ponzi scheme like that? Maybe with the scripting language included in Bitcoin?
Bitcoin Ponzi scheme
241–250 of 306 posts
Re: Bitcoin Ponzi scheme
#242I'm trying to work out if this is some grand statement on the similarities of Bitcoin to a Ponzi scheme in the way it's deflationary, or just a quick way for someone to make a few BTC. Maybe it's designed as a way to teach people about Ponzi schemes? Got to say, I pity the person who eventually deposits too much money at once, causing the payments to pause while they build up enough to cover his large deposit, in tur…
This makes me wonder if a bank could operate with Bitcoins. Not everyone would withdraw the money at once and there would be a way of publicly verifying the degree that they're leveraged. If the bank wanted to lend out part or all of a person's money, it could require their approval such that both them and the bank get a percentage of the interest rate the borrower pays. So many questions.
Re: Bitcoin Ponzi scheme
#243Earlier quoted context omitted.
Except that one is just a copy of the html and nobody is going to get paid, the chat doesn't even work.
actually I just put in 0.01 BTC, got back 0.015, put that back in again, and now I have 0.0225. I dare not try again, quite pleased with my USD$7 profit. There is definately something much scammier about it. The # of transactions doesn't increment, and with 150% payout it will die much quicker.
They're not incrementing because all of their HTML is still pointing to ponzi.io's web sockets. All I can see from their address on blockchain is lots of receiving and one sent transaction.
https://blockchain.info/address/1AQxcdPgMTTQghPXt1EXHU8vEjSn...
Re: Bitcoin Ponzi scheme
#244Re: Bitcoin Ponzi scheme
#245Earlier quoted context omitted.
Populations grow exponentially, and the whole population is required to pay into SS.
Except they don't. Populations in developing countries have now stabilized and in some cases, Japan, are well below replacement level.
Population growth is a fundamentally exponential process, even if that exponent is very close to 1 in some cases, or even less than 1.
Re: Bitcoin Ponzi scheme
#246No one finds this repulsive? People will lose money to this. Yes, they are dumb, yes it is obvious. But those who participate are still morally complicit. Enabling others who suffer from serious issues (addiction, gambling) seems like a pretty shitty thing to do.
It's as repulsive as state-run lotteries. The expected return to entrants, over all entries through its collapse, is likely even better than lotteries. At least this isn't advertising on TV and YouTube to attract even more vulnerable and unsophisticated players!
I love people like you who think they are smarter and better than anyone who would do things they don't like. Kudos.
Re: Bitcoin Ponzi scheme
#247Earlier quoted context omitted.
Except they don't. Populations in developing countries have now stabilized and in some cases, Japan, are well below replacement level.
Population growth is a fundamentally exponential process, even if that exponent is very close to 1 in some cases, or even less than 1.
but you said exponentially growing... which typically means "doubling". You are now saying the 'exponent' could be < 1... then you aren't 'growing' anymore... so you refuted your own statement.
Re: Bitcoin Ponzi scheme
#248I'm trying to work out if this is some grand statement on the similarities of Bitcoin to a Ponzi scheme in the way it's deflationary, or just a quick way for someone to make a few BTC. Maybe it's designed as a way to teach people about Ponzi schemes? Got to say, I pity the person who eventually deposits too much money at once, causing the payments to pause while they build up enough to cover his large deposit, in tur…
IMO, this was built to demonstrate one of the unique characteristics of Bitcoin. The ability to track transactions linked to addresses not owned by you, in this case, lets all participants see in realtime whether the owners are living up to their promises. Had Bernie Madoff used Bitcoin, his reign would have been over in a few minutes.
Re: Bitcoin Ponzi scheme
#249Earlier quoted context omitted.
> If you've been following what's actually gone on in the Bitcoin world for any length of time, you'd know that "BTC investors" aren't "more sophisticated" - they tend to be less so. Part of this is Bitcoin self-selects against those with a rigorous understanding of monetary economics, capital markets, and foreign exchange.
Can you prove this?
No. It is, however, a very profitable asset to make markets in,. That implies huge market inefficiencies and a large population of low-infomration market participants. The problem is the low size and liquidity make other markets more profitable to think about, since 10% of ten or twenty billion is less than a few basis points [1] of trillions.
Re: Bitcoin Ponzi scheme
#250Earlier quoted context omitted.
> At the rate at which it was going, payout was more or less ensured (300btc * 1.2 = 360. They quit 16 coins short) I think you misunderstand how ponzi schemes work.
I don't see the flaw in his reasoning, can you elaborate? EDIT: I will, then. If when he put money in when there was a total deposit of 300, the total owed by the system was 300 * 1,2 = 360. So it would all be payed when the total deposit of 360; he considered that at the rate it was going at the moment it would have been reached quickly (here is the gamble) but instead they closed the site 16 BTC short of that targe…
And the people putting in those last 16 bitcoins - what do they get back?
There are always losers in every ponzi scheme.