{"id":429810,"date":"2020-07-07T03:00:26","date_gmt":"2020-07-07T03:00:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wncen.com\/?p=429810"},"modified":"2024-06-11T11:59:46","modified_gmt":"2024-06-11T11:59:46","slug":"economist-steve-hanke-bitcoin-not-currency-speculative-asset","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wncen.com\/news\/economist-steve-hanke-bitcoin-not-currency-speculative-asset\/","title":{"rendered":"Economist Steve Hanke: Bitcoin Is Not a Currency, It’s a “Speculative Asset”"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you have read Satoshi Nakamoto’s original white paper on Bitcoin, the likely takeaway is that BTC is a currency. Take the following excerpt from the conclusion of the white paper.<\/a><\/p>\n

“We have proposed a system for electronic transactions without relying on trust. We started with the usual framework of coins made from digital signatures, which provides strong control of ownership… We proposed a peer-to-peer network using proof-of-work to record a public history of transactions.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

While Bitcoin<\/a> becoming a currency may have been the goal of Nakamoto and others, it is a goal that has not widely been accepted.<\/p>\n

Economist Rebuts Sentiment That Bitcoin Is a Currency<\/strong><\/h2>\n

On July 4th, Steve Hanke, an economist at John Hopkins University and foreign exchange trader, said that he doesn’t think Bitcoin is a currency.<\/p>\n

“#Bitcoin is not a currency, it is a speculative asset. In order for a #crypto-“currency” to be an actual currency, it must be tied to gold,” Hanke commented,<\/a> attaching the image below to his tweet.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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#Bitcoin<\/a> is not a currency, it is a speculative asset. In order for a #crypto<\/a>-"currency" to be an actual currency, it must be tied to gold. pic.twitter.com\/yMcRjeQt25<\/a><\/p>\n

— Steve Hanke (@steve_hanke) July 4, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n