Maybe it’s time for layers on top of consensus that make operations faster. Maybe not. Bitcoin is supposed to act like cash, so I think it must become immediate in order to reach wide adoption as a cash replacement.

The exchange itself is like writing a cheque though, so take bank cheques for example: The banks exchange them between them every day at the same time and then update their ledgers. This process takes 3 days to go through and considered as a full transaction, but the cheque is in your hand and is considered a legal document.

If you’d like to get immediate credit for a cheque, just give it to a third party that does clearing for a fee. If the cheque is immediate, you will pay very little. If the cheque is in the future, you will pay more, but you will get immediate credit for it.

Regarding scaling: I think companies that manage to create critical mass in local/group economies, with minimum friction in terms of investment in equipment and infrastructure, will make it happen.