So… That isn’t exactly true. You’re correct that there’s a limit to the total and circulating number of coins, but if the world suddenly decides 1 BTC = US$0, it doesn’t matter if there are less coins tomorrow than today. Both days, each coin is still worth zero.
All that to say, there’s no guarantee that a bitcoin’s value will increase over time.
I do think the fact that bitcoin is basically a random number generator that contributes to global warming is important context, but this specific criticism also applies not just all modern currencies but also physical investments as well. If we all decided tomorrow that Funko Pops aren’t worth anything, all the Funko Pop flippers would immediately chuck their “investments” into the nearest landfill. Same would happen to real estate investment if we decided that the best way to enshrined housing as a human right is to not treat land as something that can be bought, sold, owned, and repossessed by the bank if you default on a loan.
I think the crypto cultists’ blind faith in hodling until they go to the moon has caused the rest us to subconsciously internalize that crypto is a “real” thing in some way. It doesn’t behave like an investment because it’s not an investment:
its not a value-generating asset that we can use to do things, like a car or a horse
it does not hold artistic value like Funko Pops or real art
it doesn’t have inherent use like gold or land
it isn’t even a proxy for some other valuable thing thats harder to to trade, like stocks or futures
it has a similar claim to being currency as Rai stones
Point is, it’s not valueless because it loses value when we stop caring, it’s valueless because it has no fucking value.
There is one “inherent use” (if I’m understanding that term correctly) of bitcoin, and that’s to pay for space in blocks. Again, that only gives bitcoin value if people want to use bitcoin, so take that as you will.
So… That isn’t exactly true. You’re correct that there’s a limit to the total and circulating number of coins, but if the world suddenly decides 1 BTC = US$0, it doesn’t matter if there are less coins tomorrow than today. Both days, each coin is still worth zero.
All that to say, there’s no guarantee that a bitcoin’s value will increase over time.
I do think the fact that bitcoin is basically a random number generator that contributes to global warming is important context, but this specific criticism also applies not just all modern currencies but also physical investments as well. If we all decided tomorrow that Funko Pops aren’t worth anything, all the Funko Pop flippers would immediately chuck their “investments” into the nearest landfill. Same would happen to real estate investment if we decided that the best way to enshrined housing as a human right is to not treat land as something that can be bought, sold, owned, and repossessed by the bank if you default on a loan.
I think the crypto cultists’ blind faith in hodling until they go to the moon has caused the rest us to subconsciously internalize that crypto is a “real” thing in some way. It doesn’t behave like an investment because it’s not an investment:
Point is, it’s not valueless because it loses value when we stop caring, it’s valueless because it has no fucking value.
There is one “inherent use” (if I’m understanding that term correctly) of bitcoin, and that’s to pay for space in blocks. Again, that only gives bitcoin value if people want to use bitcoin, so take that as you will.