CAN WE SAY CRYPTOCURRENCY IS AN INVESTMENT OR MONEY?
I think a similar question would be is gold an investment or is it money? It's a commodity that is also used as money. Most commodities are not used as money think of oil, grain, cotton, and even diamonds. The only ones I know of that can do this are copper, silver, gold… and Bitcoin.
At this point some people will argue that Bitcoin is not a commodity. They will argue that commodities must have usage apart from functioning as money. If no one wanted your gold you could atleast make jewelry out of it.
I want to first point out the actual uses of gold.
- Jewelry
- Electronics
- Wiring
- And as a store of value.
Most of gold's value does not come from its tangible uses. In fact, the majority of the world's gold sits in vaults while people exchange papers that show how much of it they own. You can't tell me that gold is worth 1233 dollars a pound because of its jewelry! It's value comes from its scarcity and the fact that people have used it to store value for thousands of years.
Bitcoin
Bitcoin is a digital commodity that is modeled after gold but has advantages that gold doesn't as well as some flaws.
It is easily divisible and transportable
It is decentralized and transparent
It costs money to make
It is not tangible
The biggest problem most people have with Bitcoin as a commodity is that you can't touch it. Even if no one will buy your gold you can still make jewelry. So what is the tangible use of Bitcoin?
- Its blockchain technology
- Its network
- Its decentralization
Here is the most important question that Bitcoin poses: can computer code be a commodity?
The essence of bitcoin prays not only in its shortcomings but in its revelation, its concept of not confiscable, hence the birth of being classified as digital gold.
And answering your question, yes, we will reach the point that a couple of numbers, preceded by a comma and protected by a unique hash code will be classified as a commodity, a representative, real and additional form of value, free from any institutional influence. and governmental, at least in its essence.
This is a critical quest.
Well, in my opinion, if we just see cryptocurrency as money, then, we will limit its utility and it would be difficult for many people to adopt. We rather see cryptocurrencies tied to real products and be seen as an investment.
I'd rather see cryptocurrency and blockchain as a technology and not just an investment or money. If we understand the concept, we will understand how best to utilize it. Even if crypto fails to become the generally accepted money, the technology has endless applications.