Bitcoin prices have fallen, but user interest and developer activity remain as strong as ever.Read MoreCoinDesk
Never mind what the naysayers are claiming about bitcoin in the midst of this down crypto market. The case for sustained bitcoin interest and continually improving fundamentals remains as sound as ever.
Recently a prominent personal finance guru, Ramit Sethi, posted the following comment on Twitter:
While I agree with his comment on passive income real estate, I feel the potshot at bitcoin is based on opinion and not steeped in the truth.
Let me provide some context and explain why I believe bitcoin interest is as strong as ever.
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As for context, what most people need to recognize is that the monetization of bitcoin takes decades, not months.
In regards to strength in bitcoin interest, here are a few pieces of evidence:
First, I’ve noticed no reduction in interest in bitcoin, despite the recent price decline. Conversations are only just picking up steam as people are starting to probe into unanswered questions – questions about what money is and where the funding is for all the government spending. This became obvious to me after I was recently asked to be in a bitcoin book club with financial advisors looking to learn more about bitcoin.
Bitcoin is the song that does not end.
Second, fewer people are selling bitcoin than you may realize. Stanley Druckenmiller mentioned that when he was first interested in bitcoin, a conversation with Paul Tutor Jones helped spur his enthusiasm. A stat Paul Tutor Jones shared stuck with Druckenmiller: “Do you know that when bitcoin went from $17,000 to $3,000 that 86% of the people that owned it at $17,000 never sold it?” The comments on the acclaimed financial guru’s post were also littered with comments like “I’m still here” and “Nothing has changed.”
But we have facts to back up these claims that bitcoin holding has remained steady. According to Glassnode, 78% of bitcoin’s supply hasn’t moved in six months.
Bitcoin is the song that does not end.
Third, if the “bitcoin promoters” were all gone, the hashrate would be dropping. Hashrate refers to the level of computing power given to the network through mining. Yet despite the price, the bitcoin hashrate has been making all-time highs.
There is a saying in bitcoin that miners are the most bullish bitcoiners of all. That’s because of the risks and capital outlays as well as the time it takes to plan, execute and sustain as a miner. If bitcoin was on its deathbed, the hashrate wouldn’t be climbing the way it is.
We can revisit this post 12 months from now, and the odds are that bitcoin will still be creating blocks every 10 minutes, that the hashrate will be higher, that there will still be a 21 million supply cap and that the adoption of the network will be increasing.
Bitcoin is the song that does not end.
Not only is investor interest in bitcoin still high, developer interest in crypto continues to evolve.
The builders in the crypto industry are rolling out products and services to make storing, spending and running a business on bitcoin easier. The building has been nonstop.
One of the most exciting things I’ve seen is the interest in small business owners in looking at how to accept bitcoin payments. This has always been challenging for merchants, given the challenges of confirmations and block times on the Bitcoin mainchain being approximately 10 minutes.
Here are a few projects that are working to provide solutions:
IBEX has a superb offering on Bitcoin’s second layer called Lighting. It allows for a plug-and-play solution enabling merchants to accept Lighting payments and adding margin by cutting their processing fees by 80%. By comparison, IBEX Lighting charges 0.50% and Stripe charges 2.9%, or 30 cents per swipe.
Oshi, another unique project, is helping small businesses with bitcoin rewards. It allows those businesses an easy way to start earning bitcoin and offering bitcoin rewards to customers and clients. Whether your local plumber, brewery owner, coffee shop or veterinarian, owners want new business, and Oshi’s bet is that new customers desire bitcoin rewards.
Fedimint was recently released to help bridge the gap between secure but complex self-custody and simple but regulated third-party custody. The third option that this project proposes could help decentralize custody for the masses.
Bitcoin is the song that does not end.
The financial media and legacy gurus miss that bitcoin’s price is one thing and that the adoption story and technology around the ecosystem is another.
What they fail to recognize is that the bitcoin train has left the station – and over the long term there’s no slowing it down.
Bitcoin is the song that does not end. The promoters haven’t tucked tail, but instead are holding and building for the millions to come next.
By the way, if you’ve never heard of The Song That Does Not End, check it out on YouTube.
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