Is crypto just one big Ponzi scheme?
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Is crypto just one big Ponzi scheme?
1–10 of 82 posts
Re: Is crypto just one big Ponzi scheme?
#2Are there any good discussions of how in the past new currencies have historically been received by the public?
Crypto is a little unusual compared to other Ponzi targets in its nature as a putative currency. It "makes its own value" in a certain sense.
Re: Is crypto just one big Ponzi scheme?
#3It would be as much a Ponzi scheme as gold would be.
Re: Is crypto just one big Ponzi scheme?
#4I think of more like a combination between russian roulette and a ponzi.
Assuming you refuse to sell at a loss you mainly risk being stuck.
Price never recovers to a profitable point for you (you took the bullet, those who sold to you won).
I think everyone knows that at some point, the party ends, and it's mostly about how far you're willing to take it, who will end up with the bullet in their head.
Re: Is crypto just one big Ponzi scheme?
#5It would be as much a Ponzi scheme as gold would be.
Not really. People don't invest in gold thinking it will go to the moon. They invest in it thinking it will be a stable value to protect from currency / inflation / recession risks.
Re: Is crypto just one big Ponzi scheme?
#6It would be as much a Ponzi scheme as gold would be.
Not really. People don't invest in gold thinking it will go to the moon. They invest in it thinking it will be a stable value to protect from currency / inflation / recession risks.
Not to mention Gold also has actual industrial and other uses!
Re: Is crypto just one big Ponzi scheme?
#7everyone talks about investment but I do use crypto quite often as an actual payment. its great: secure from government overreach, no taxes, quasi instant transaction, low fees, anonymous.
Re: Is crypto just one big Ponzi scheme?
#8Earlier quoted context omitted.
Not really. People don't invest in gold thinking it will go to the moon. They invest in it thinking it will be a stable value to protect from currency / inflation / recession risks.
Not to mention Gold also has actual industrial and other uses!
Well now you can argue that crypto also has actual industrial and other uses, they just shadow the most of the trading volume which is all about speculation and money laundering
Re: Is crypto just one big Ponzi scheme?
#9I'm not a fan of the ponzi accusation against speculation. There are always other factors to subjective valuation which are perhaps deliberately ignored by detractors. This is contentious here for whatever reason. Even the idea of subjective value, different strokes for different folks, live and let live and "if you don't like it, don't buy it" seems controversial at times.
For the sake of discussion, even if we assume that cryptocurrency is purely a speculative endeavor with no other utility - cryptocurrency is still not a ponzi. A ponzi scheme has a specific definition. It is a form of fraud. The promoter deliberately misrepresents the source of income. Typically he will attribute the gains he pays to his marks to a market based investment scheme.
If we take the alternate view, that anything where the asset must be sold to recoup a return, and thus that new entrants must pay the existing holders before they exit, which markets are not ponzis? Is the used car market now a ponzi according to this definition? You cannot sell your used car until someone else buys it! Collectibles like coins, stamps or 'trading' cards?
Words matter. Defining our terms is important to understanding what we are talking about.
Re: Is crypto just one big Ponzi scheme?
#10everyone talks about investment but I do use crypto quite often as an actual payment. its great: secure from government overreach, no taxes, quasi instant transaction, low fees, anonymous.
What do you use for payment? The debit cards?