What If Bitcoin Isn’t ‘The One?’
By Ryan @ Crypto Blox on ALTCOIN MAGAZINE
It’s still early days in the cryptocurrency revolution…
As these chart show:
When we survey the various crypto projects around the world, we see a petri dish of exciting innovation.
The world’s brightest minds working on the most challenging problems in computer science, game theory and economics.
All in a quest to solve a problem that had stumped the world for thousands of years — how to minimise the role of third parties in human transactions.
Satoshi Nakamoto wrote in the seminal Bitcoin white paper:
‘Commerce on the Internet has come to rely almost exclusively on financial institutions serving as trusted third parties to process electronic payments…
Completely non-reversible transactions are not really possible since financial institutions cannot avoid mediating disputes…
With the possibility of reversal, the need for trust spreads… A certain percentage of fraud is accepted as unavoidable.
These costs and payment uncertainties can be avoided in person by using physical currency, but no mechanism exists to make payments over a communications channel without a trusted party.’[RD1]
The Bitcoin [BTC] system was the first answer to this problem.
But by no means the last…
Since 2009 thousands of crypto projects have sprung up promising to improve upon Bitcoins' groundbreaking concept. Most have failed miserably. But some are showing great promise.
And it begs the question: What if Bitcoin isn’t the one to bring crypto to the masses?
Let’s explore that possibility for a moment…
Watch What They Do
A lot of people tell you cryptocurrency is a fraud…
Not just any people, either. The most well-known financial personalities of our time have been telling you this for years.
And yet they’ve all been staggeringly wrong.
Check out this tweet:
As the old saying goes, watch what they do, not what they say…
That’s why a survey earlier this year by financial powerhouse Fidelity was very interesting.
Check out the results below:
- Almost seven in 10 respondents cited certain characteristics of digital assets as appealing
- 47% view digital assets as having a place in their investment portfolios
- 72% prefer to buy investment products that hold digital assets, 57% prefer to buy crypto assets directly, 57% prefer to buy an investment product that holds digital asset companies
- 22% of institutional investors already have some exposure to digital assets, with most investments having been made within the past three years.
- Four in ten respondents say they are open to future investments in digital assets over the next five years.
Source: Fidelity Investments
Digital Assets Are The Future
The fact is, big funds with billions to play with, are starting to invest into digital assets. It’s still just a first toe in the water maybe…
But it is happening.
And note the use of the phrase ‘digital assets’, not ‘bitcoin.’
That’s a key thing to remember.
Although bitcoin is still the Grand-Daddy of the crypto scene, it would be naïve to think that its victory is inevitable
There’s chance crypto succeeds but bitcoin fails. Or that bitcoin does OK, but other cryptocurrency projects do even better.
(Editor’s note: Or of course there’s also the chance they all fail. We think that outcome is unlikely but it could happen.)
Never forget that Google was something like the 21st search engine company to launch. A full four years after Yahoo’s search product launched.
And we know how that story ended up…
In a similar vein, there’s the chance a new cryptocurrency will spring up and set the world alight. And in turn replace Bitcoin.
You’ve always got to be open to that possibility, especially when it comes to technology.
For our part, we think the most likely result is that a bunch of cryptocurrency projects will succeed.
We do think Bitcoin has cemented its advantage as ‘digital gold’ and will be a mainstay of the future economy.
But we also think that more than a few smaller cryptos will make better returns over the next five years too. Much better…
You just need to know what you’re looking for and stay flexible in your thinking.
As always, time will reveal all…
Ryan @ The Crypto Blox Team
[RD1]https://medium.com/@lightcoin/the-problem-bitcoin-solves-8b3944ea77a7
