Why mind-spinning Bitcoin is revolutionary
Originally published 2013-04-08 on Business Spectator. Bitcoin has been getting attention recently due to its meteoric rise in value against fiat currencies. Just over a week ago the market capitalisation reached $1 billion. Overnight it cracked the $2 billion mark, with each Bitcoin valued at $US194.90. Nobody yet knows the true value of 1BTC, and no one knows what will happen when this ‘price discovery’ comes to an end. Eye-rolling critics argue that Bitcoin has no intrinsic value, and the deflationary nature of the currency will ensure its eventual demise (Alan Kohler even likened it to the 1637 ’tulip bulb bubble’ - see The Bitcoin bubble, April 8). I disagree on both counts. ...