Tag Archives: cryptocurrencies

More than forty years ago, Nobel laureate Friedrich von Hayek published a small book in which he called for the “denationalization of money.” For him, high inflation rates in all countries were proof that states were abusing their monopoly on issuing banknotes, and that only private money in competition could guarantee stable money. Hayek was more concerned with the regulatory principle of competition than with the question of how a competitive monetary system could be concretely shaped....

One of the prime myths that white-collar criminologists have to refute repeatedly is that blockchain makes fraud impossible. Blockchain, in some settings, is a costly means of making some frauds much more difficult. Blockchain is useless against the most important frauds. The primitive worship of blockchain as a supposed garlic capable of warding off evil breeds complacency, and complacency produces increased fraud and greatly extends the life of fraud.… Sheriff Bill is on the case. New...

As a new crypto lender, Nexo, launches Monday, the fintechs that lend money to people based on the digital currency they own say they’re doing well even when cryptocurrency values plummet. Longish but interesting article that looks at three crypto lenders.American BankerCrypto lending may be risky, but these firms say they've solved the riddle Penny Crosman

MMT.Makes MogulTheBitcoin Fallacy-Back to the Gold Standard Jonah Ho

Cryptocurrencies have been the subject of recent attacks by official sector representatives, and the G20 finance ministers will consider regulatory proposals at their next meeting in Buenos Aires. This column argues that while cryptocurrencies present certain risks, they also represent an important innovation that promises to enhance choice and efficiency in monetary transactions. A proportionate, risk-based regulatory approach is required to accommodate differential attitudes and...

Three startups are getting ready to launch one of the most ambitious and important cryptocurrency experiments since the creation of bitcoin itself. Called Lightning, the project aims to build a fast, scalable, and cryptographically secure payment network layered on top of the existing bitcoin network. Essentially, Lightning aims to solve the big problem that has loomed over bitcoin in recent years: Satoshi Nakamoto's design for bitcoin is comically unscalable. It requires every full node...

After bitcoin goes to (essentially) zero (since it is global, even a few oddballs can prop up its value for years at some low level, like hobbyists do for all kinds of things), which it will, some will say that it was regulation that killed it, not, as I explain, because crypto is worthless because it is not part of a balance sheet and as such has no inherent value to extinguish debt. To be clear: That bitcoin can’t withstand being treated as any other ordinary good yet does not deserve...

A major endorsement from a very influential bureaucrat. Russia InsiderTop Russian Finance Official (Sergey Gorkov) Gives Huge Endorsement to Cryptos Lewis Hayward

Is Bitcoin a Reaction to US Dollar Hegemony? Like Mike has been saying for some time. The DuranDe-dollarization and the rise of Bitcoin. Is there a connection between the two? Alex ChristoforouSee alsoThe iron fist of the US. As the launch of new ‘petro’ cryptocurrency draws near, a US government agency declared that this newcomer to the digital financial market may represent a violation of sanctions imposed against Venezuela, its issuer. Sputnik InternationalUS Treasury Warns About...

From an MMT perspective.Clint BallingerOf Bitcoins and Balance Sheets: The Real Lesson From Bitcoin