2014-12-18

Cato: Bitcoin Might Not Be Money, but Cryptocurrencies are the Way of the Future

Kevin Dowd, a long-time friend and eminent free-banking authority, set his sights on Bitcoin in the book he published this summer: New Private Monies: A Bit Part Player?.  His work delivers a refreshingly accurate and straightforward assessment of Bitcoin, ignoring the hype which surrounds it.
Both Kevin and I appreciate the importance of cryptocurrencies: in his own words, “The broader implications of cryptocurrency are extremely profound.”  The peer-to-peer exchange structure common to cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin cuts the intermediary out of transactions.  This eliminates the need for a third party in exchanges and protects wealth against exchange controls or capital controls.  Because Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are entirely digital, the location of the two parties of a transaction is irrelevant: transactions can be carried out anywhere.  This also makes transactions highly anonymous, a feature appealing to consumers who cherish privacy.
Read more at http://www.cato.org/blog/bitcoin-might-not-be-money-cryptocurrencies-are-way-future

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