This is possibly one of the first emails about Bitcoin (see below). It is now 11 years on and we have come some way since then.
You can see Satoshi Nakamoto introducing what he/she calls “a new electronic cash system”.
Who would have thought that from an online payment method that Satoshi would kickstart a digital revolution that now has a market cap of USD 166,665,573,878 as of 31st October 2019.
What an invention!. Some have likened its achievement to the lightbulb or even the internet. One thing is for sure a decentralized monetary system was needed. Otherwise, it would not have gained in popularity as much as it did.
It started out having a reputation for being used for illegal deals and now it has shed much of that reputation. It can be used for almost anything as companies like Wirex offer payment cards.
Central banks are still so far behind the curve and are concerned about the digital currency but it seems that Libra has stolen some of the limelight.
Personally I think Bitcoin works better lurking in the shadows of the traditional monetary system. An anti-establishment symbol if you will. Libra have confirmed they will not launch until regulators are satisfied. Bitcoin didn’t need to ask for permission!
It has obviously made some people very wealthy but it was made by the people for the people.
Now with so many coins on the digital marketplace, it seems that there is also a coin for everything.
It is somewhat interesting how people came to look at value for the digital currency. When Bitcoin was first created technical analysis was far from peoples mind. The field of technical analysis is a study of price. So it became natural that the price analysis moved in that direction. Then there was the introduction of the derivatives market with the rise of futures and options. This kind of financial innovation is bittersweet in my opinion. We could have gone the other way and kept Bitcoin away from a traditional financial model. It seems that traders and investors were looking for acceptance instead of defiance.
Now we have moved in that direction, it seems that regulation is key for the future. ETF’s, ETN’s and funds are all looking to get regulated so that bigger investors can enter the fray and legitimise the product. Large exchanges like the CME Group and Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) have now regulated products and are expanding their offering. The future is still unclear for the digital currency but we can all agree it is disruptive and has changed the history of finance forever.
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