Re:China and the soaring price of Bitcoin
by Retric on Thursday November 21, 2013 @08:43AM
(#6774579)
Only if something else does not supplant it. Right now it's like investing in 1980's baseball cards, sure there not making more but nothing guarantees anyone want's them in 10 years.
Re:China and the soaring price of Bitcoin
by gutnor on Thursday November 21, 2013 @09:10AM
(#6774684)
That's a problem for a currency, no ? You are in effect rewarded for no spending it, or in other word not using it as a currency.
Seems like Bitcoin is instead becoming a new class of asset rather than a currency.
Re:China and the soaring price of Bitcoin
by SkyMarshal on Thursday November 21, 2013 @09:35AM
(#6774828)
It was in the past, in less dynamic, less connected, less 'always on' economies. We've never seen what a deflationary currency will do in a modern, wired, 'speed-of-light/electricity' economy though.
It could lead to increased capital formation (savings) and less frivolous spending, eg spending only on necessities and appreciating assets, and less on throwaway, planned obsolete junk, while still maintaining enough velocity not to stall the economy. Leaner but still viable. Of course, getting from here to there will not be painless.
Who knows, jury's still out on it imho, will have to watch and see. Front-row seats to one of the greatest economic experiments of history, for better or worse.
Re:China and the soaring price of Bitcoin
by wyager on Thursday November 21, 2013 @09:38AM
(#6774847)
It simply changes how much people are willing to spend. The question becomes "Does buying this thing now have more utility to me than having several times this thing's value in a few years?" The answer is sometimes "yes".
It's a deflationary currency. Sure there may be rises and falls, but in the long term, the trend will only be in one direction.