Weekend column: Bitcoin is property, not currency
There is always a lot of discussion about what exactly Bitcoin is. Some see it as ownership, just like you can own a building or shares in a company. Others see it as the best form of money that ever existed. Ultimately, Bitcoin means different things to different people.
Bitcoin is property, not currency
A point that Michael Saylor is keen to emphasize. The narrative Saylor is pushing makes a lot of sense from his point of view. By borrowing dollars cheaply and buying bitcoin with them, he is launching a speculative attack on the dollar. If you want to upset policymakers as little as possible, it is better to describe bitcoin as a property.
“No one is trying to buy coffee with the equity that they hold from a building on 5th Avenue” – Michael Saylor
This does not alter the fact that plenty of bitcoin payment companies are being built.
In my opinion, Parker Lewis explains it very clearly:
“All money is property but not all property is money”
The fact that you can’t buy coffee with part of the equity of a building on 5th Avenue means that a building is not money! But with Bitcoin you can do this that is exactly the difference between money & property.
There is a big difference between a store of value and a medium of exchange. Money must fulfill both functions. Bitcoin fulfills both functions and is therefore money. In addition, it is important to realize that bitcoin is not the same for everyone. It solves different problems, for different people.
For Michael Saylorwhich will likely hold it for decades, bitcoin is a means of storing value. In developing countries where there are more frictions surrounding payments, bitcoin can be an interesting medium of exchange. For example, the continent of Africa has 40+ different currencies. For a political refugee that is cut off from the monetary system, bitcoin is a lifeline.
In the West we are mainly focused on bitcoin as a superior savings technology. Because only a very small % of people really understand Bitcoin (just ask 100 people on the street if they know what Bitcoin is), I expect that Bitcoin will be THE ULTIMATE PROPERTY will stay!
The more people learn about bitcoin, the more demand there will be for bitcoin. More demand leads to higher prices and more value for the bitcoin network as a whole. This in turn arouses the interest of new people, resulting in a positive feedback loop!
So what is bitcoin?
It depends on. For most people in the West, bitcoin is digital property. For most people in the global south, bitcoin is digital currency. So it is very dependent on the geographical location. This is exactly what is so great about Bitcoin: it can be many things to different people around the world. Bitcoin as a property, as an asset, as a currency and as a payment system.
Bitcoin expert Rick Hutting writes a weekly weekend column on the subject. You can sign up for his free daily online newsletter by clicking here . You can also follow him on Linkedin.
