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Re:Central bank cryptocurrencies by neilwilson on Tuesday September 19, 2017 @03:14AM (#15282417)
The banks are in debt to trillions of dollars to people who are 'in credit'. That's what 'in credit' means. It is the accounting term for a liability.

Does that keep you awake at night too?

For every asset there is a liability - even with cryptocurrencies.

What you are missing with government 'debt' is that it creates safe private assets that keep the pension system going.

Re:Central bank cryptocurrencies by beefield on Tuesday September 19, 2017 @05:05AM (#15282914)
> For every asset there is a liability - even with cryptocurrencies.

I would think that bitcoin is no-ones liability? I mean, there are a bunch of bitcoins that you may or may not be able to sell someone with a price, but there is no-one who has any kind of legal or even moral obligation to give you anything in exchange of a bitcoin.

Re:Central bank cryptocurrencies by option_greek on Tuesday September 19, 2017 @06:03AM (#15283169)
Liability will start once you start loaning them out to others and package the loans to other investors who them show them as assets to borrow something from someone else :).
Re:Central bank cryptocurrencies by beefield on Tuesday September 19, 2017 @06:10AM (#15283200)
Sure. But it is not the bitcoin that is the liability, it is the loan contract.
Re:Central bank cryptocurrencies by SuoDuanDao on Tuesday September 19, 2017 @06:43AM (#15283342)
If I understand your argument, you're saying that I'm a 'creditor' to my bank when I deposit money there that they are obliged to return on demand. Fair enough, but the reason I deal with banks is that it's cheaper than protecting my assets personally. Cryptocurrency is cheaper than dealing with the banks.

So if I find a dollar on the beach and pick it up, what liability has been created by my having a new asset? Are you saying that the potential to find the dollar was some sort of collective asset that I've turned into a liability? That seems like an unnecessarily complicated way of looking at things.

The only thing that can keep the pension system going is a growing population paying into it. Pensions are the ultimate pyramid scheme, the idea that bonds are a safe private asset... safe compared to what, and how safe on an absolute basis?

Re:Central bank cryptocurrencies by marcosdumay on Tuesday September 19, 2017 @10:03AM (#15284676)
> So if I find a dollar on the beach and pick it up, what liability has been created by my having a new asset?

That dollar bill is a title of government debit.