The problems we see with Bitcoin now are severe and detrimental and not at all aligned with its original goal and purpose. However, these issues were foreseen, hence the fork (Bitcoin Cash). High transaction fees coupled with extreme volatility and a slow transaction time is making sure BTC will not be used for small transactions. If things continue to escalate or stay status quo, BTC's purpose will as predicted be just as a backing coin, like gold once was, but even for that purpose, it needs to be less volatile.
Steam is no longer supporting Bitcoin
331–340 of 412 posts
Re: Steam is no longer supporting Bitcoin
#332Earlier quoted context omitted.
No, it becomes an asset, like gold.
The thing with gold is that it's been valued for thousands of years all around the world and you can show it off, and we're pretty sure that we won't find a pure gold asteroid hurling towards us. BC has none of those advantages.
Wait, has a pure Bitcoin asteroid been detected already?
Re: Steam is no longer supporting Bitcoin
#333Earlier quoted context omitted.
If BTC isn't valuable as a currency, then it is in fact a speculative bubble that will suffer a dramatic collapse, just like the tulip mania in the Netherlands in the 17th century.
What about the new "digital gold" store of wealth narrative?
Yes, but gold has been used as a currency for thousands of years and it does not share many of the problems of Bitcoin — for example it isn't so volatile.
Of course, it's a finite resource and mining it involves dynamiting mountains and cyanide poisoning the environment, but then again Bitcoin mining currently consumes enormous amounts of energy and it can only grow from here. Also countries with no gold reserves have been at a disadvantage, but then Bitcoin mining will require enormous resources as well and countries without those resources will remain at a disadvantage. So personally I don't see any benefits whatsoever.
If I had wealth to store, I'd invest in property simply because properties have intrinsic value. And yes, I'd still buy gold before Bitcoin or any other currency for storing wealth long term.
Bitcoin is currently only useful for speculative gains and I don't see that changing.
Re: Steam is no longer supporting Bitcoin
#334Earlier quoted context omitted.
If BTC isn't valuable as a currency, then it is in fact a speculative bubble that will suffer a dramatic collapse, just like the tulip mania in the Netherlands in the 17th century.
What about the new "digital gold" store of wealth narrative?
Digital gold term is utter nonsense and nothing more than wishful thinking of those involved. Gold has huge value, be it national reserves, jewelry, industries etc. and has never, ever lost much of its value.
Bitcoin is a classical ponzi, you don't have more than few bytes of otherwise meaningless data, and only emotions are keeping the value so high. And as we know, emotions change.
Don't insult gold. It will be around long after Bitcoin will become just another part of history.
Re: Steam is no longer supporting Bitcoin
#335[deleted]
Re: Steam is no longer supporting Bitcoin
#336Earlier quoted context omitted.
Can you go into more detail as to why that world would be terrifying? Is it because the implications predicted by orthodox monetary theory?
"Is it because the implications predicted by orthodox monetary theory?" ---> Bitcoin is not money There is no 'economics' or 'finance' or anything at play. It's Tulip Bulbs without the Tulip Bulbs. There are numbers, being traded back and forth for money 'because'. There is no way to price BTC - there are no real underlying drivers - just what your cab driver and the guy in your office is willing to pay in that day -…
What are your dollars but numbers being added and subtracted in a database? Things have value because people assign them value. There isn't some magical property that makes the trust in US government more legitimate than trust in math and cryptography. It would seem a lot of people would argue in favor of the latter as well.
Re: Steam is no longer supporting Bitcoin
#337Earlier quoted context omitted.
The volatility of Bitcoin has been decreasing over time.
Recent price jumps tell a different story. Do you have any data to back it up?
Re: Steam is no longer supporting Bitcoin
#338Earlier quoted context omitted.
Stocks are a thing because no one thinks of them as liquid assets. Steam is making the same argument about bitcoin essentially.
It was eye-opening to realize people buy stocks for 2 reasons: 1. Dividend payments 2. The expectation that someone else will want the stock more in the future. (Often for reason #1.) Financially, there is no other logical reason to possess stocks. It was part of the larger lesson that companies often perform irrational actions because they are made primarily out of people.
3. Voting rights.
Re: Steam is no longer supporting Bitcoin
#339Earlier quoted context omitted.
Eh? The volatility is a HUGE problem for bitcoin as a currency. If I run a small business, accepting payment in bitcoin just creates risk. The state of my business not only depends on the quality and success of my product/service but also on the volatility of bitcoin because by accepting bitcoin I am forced to effectively take a long position on BTC. The price could crash by 25% before I sell the bitcoin and now I've…
Exactly. Until we pay rent, wages & stock with Bitcoin, it's essentially just digital gold bullion. You'd be an idiot to pay for any service with Bitcoin. A million dollar pizza makes for a great news story, but it would suck knowing that you effectively let go of millions of dollars just to buy a pizza. Bitcoin holders are disincentivized from spending it.
It's almost like being inherently deflationary is a negative property for a currency to have...but that can't be true, because lots of cryptobugs have explained to me at great length why this is actually Good For Bitcoin.
Re: Steam is no longer supporting Bitcoin
#340Earlier quoted context omitted.
If the futures markets at the CBOT or CME attract volume, you could use those. Otherwise, you'd have to do it over-the-counter. Borrow a bitcoin from someone and turn it into real money. When you have to repay, if BTC is down, you'll buy back a BTC at a profit. If it's up, you'll have to buy back at a loss. Note that this gives you a maximum gain of whatever BTC/USD is today (assuming you denominate in greenbacks), w…
http://www.cmegroup.com/trading/bitcoin-futures.html http://cfe.cboe.com/cfe-products/xbt-cboe-bitcoin-futures Apparently they will list on 18 Dec on CME, and 10 Dec on CBOE. I get the feeling that there will be a fair bit of selling pressure as a result. That's usually the case on lockup expiries and it would make sense for the initiation of a volatile instrument that wasn't previously shortable on a listed basis. I…
> I wonder how hedging transactions will affect the mechanics of the bitcoin market.
The bitcoin market is astonishingly shallow compared to most commodities and nearly unregulated, I assume hedge funds and other smart money can and will manipulate the price up and down to their own advantage.