Whatever your attitude towards digital currencies, the rally of this asset class was simply incredible. Thirteen years ago, bitcoin was nothing more than an idea in the head of Satoshi Nakamoto (whose identity has not yet been disclosed). His “white paper” paved the way for the emergence of bitcoin and the blockchain technology underlying fintech.
In 2010, anyone could buy BTC for just five cents. The tokens, which could then be bought for one dollar, were worth more than a million dollars as of the end of last week.
And attention to digital currencies is riveted not only because of their rapid growth
The ideology of the new asset class itself implies the transfer of control over the money supply to end users. Cryptocurrencies are the apogee of the libertarian concept of means of exchange.
Many well-known representatives of the technology sector, including the CEO of Square (NYSE:SQ) and Twitter (NYSE:TWTR) Jack Dorsey, the owner of Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Elon Musk, as well as the head of Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:FB) Mark Zuckerberg, are supporters of the fast-growing asset class.
However, the list of skeptics includes no less solid names. Jamie Dimon of (NYSE:JPM), Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger of Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRKa), as well as many other investors and bankers are against cryptocurrencies because they are the guardians of the status quo.
Government officials explain their antagonism to the possibility of illegal use of cryptocurrencies by the creators of ransomware and other criminals, but in fact they are concerned about maintaining control over the money supply – one of the pillars of power.
Bitcoin remains the leader of its asset class, but ether is literally on its heels. Last week, the second largest cryptocurrency by capitalization took another milestone, rewriting a record high.
