News for hackers. Stuff that matters.

A comment on Photos: Life inside of China’s massive and remote Bitcoin mines. Parent comment

Re:Photos: Life inside of China’s massive and remote Bitcoin... by kuschku on Wednesday July 12, 2017 @02:25PM (#14755133)
> Bitcoin payments can be cleared off-chain, like VISA payments can be cleared without using SWIFT.

The whole point of SEPA transfers was to move all transfers to be cleared directly via the main ledger, in a matter of seconds, across different countries and currencies.

If Bitcoin is inferior to an existing payment system used by 500 million people, then it’s worthless.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Photos: Life inside of China’s massive and remote Bitcoin... by runeks on Wednesday July 12, 2017 @02:56PM (#14755445)
Bitcoin is global and decentralized while SEPA is EU-only and centralized. The two are not in competition; neither is an alternative to the other.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Photos: Life inside of China’s massive and remote Bitcoin... by placeybordeaux on Wednesday July 12, 2017 @04:24PM (#14756310)
> If Bitcoin is inferior to an existing payment system used by 500 million people, then it’s worthless.

If Bitcoin is strictly inferior to an existing payment system used by 500 million, then it's worthless.

IMO the major value proposition of bitcoin is that no one can exert influence to invalidate tx or blacklist certain users. Payment systems that have this property will always have some utility for organizations that nation state actors are trying to stop, e.g. ransomware, any darknet market provider, political dissidents, freedom fighters/terrorists, people trying to participate in a market in a controlled economy etc.

[ Parent | on HN ]