Bitcoin Forum

I was just thinking about this today...

There are so many people employed in Numismatics. { http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numismatics } and we also have many hobbyists, who collects coins.

When digital currencies take over from physical fiat currencies... {eventually they will... minting is just too expensive} ... What will these industries do?

How do they adapt?

There are other industries like this, who are going the same route ...example being the printing press... and Digital media.

It is kind of sad, to think about the legacy of these fiat currencies and what the new technology might be destroying.  :(

I think collectors will become richer as their collected coins become more scarce?  ::)  ;D

I am talking about the people employed in this business. We are talking about 1000's of job losses as time goes by.

How do they adopt their business model and practice to exist in a world, where there are no more physical fiat coins or currencies?

Yes, the coins will become more valuable... but it would have done so, even if crypto currencies did not take it's place.

I know, these industries will loose a lot of jobs, and it will be cancelled out by the jobs created by Crypto currencies... BUT it's sad to see such a old practice, being replaced.

It was the same, when automation replaced physical jobs done by humans. { The technology kills jobs, and certain crafts die out. }

As someone who is starting a new Jewelry store with a numismatic component, I can answer this.

Coin collecting is not in competition with bitcoin. Coins are valued based largely on their rarity, with some consideration for their nominal value in the case of precious metal or popularity, if the coin design is especially pretty, unique or it captures a particularly affluent or enthusiastic market. they will become popular with collectors.
 Coins with Numismatic value are a physical property that can be displayed in a visually appealing manner and are just one way of holding value in a form that is usually not subject to inflation.

Bitcoin is a way of accepting payment, and except in the case of certain pieces such as Casascius, there is little to compare cryptocurrency and physical coins.

The job losses in the business are because of a shift in general collecting habits based on a general understanding amongst collectors that most rare coin purchases do not always increase in value. Whereas many of the rarest coins still do increase year on year, they are extremely rare and generally are held by high-net-worth individuals who do not need to sell, and therefore rarity generally only increases as each sale happens. Coin shops go out of business because they do not shift their inventory to match public tastes or refuse to compete online where the majority of rare coin transactions are made.

New Physical coins will always exist.

I am sure people thought that with the invention of photography that painting would necessarily become obsolete, however, that is not the case. Sure, there has been massive market share loss for painters, but a niche market will always exist. The painters who reaped the biggest rewards around the time of the perfection of color photography decided to specialize in imaginative paintings that did not compete with photography.   

Today, companies such as Provident Metals capture market share by focusing on specialized coins with great workmanship at low prices made of precious metals that speak to enthusiastic groups (bitcoin, liberty, marijuana, even those who like zombies) They are a great example of a successful shift from the traditional collection of all dates and mint-marks on pennies and nickels to a more artistic and specialized clientele.

its a collectors industry just like today people still collect old baseball cards and comics.

They will collect physical bitcoins.

As time advances, and new technology is created,
it is normal evolution that areas of industry/employment will no longer exist or have humans employed.

These jobs will be gone, IMO, except for collectors (ex. coin/gold/silver/hobby stores).

One day even you will wake up and see that even your job has been rendered null.

It will be easier for collectors to make purchases over the internet anonymously. And many collectors appreciate being anonymous. Shops that sell anything but necessities will have a hard time competing in price and selection. Shops that adapt to selling over the internet and accept bitcoins will do better.

The cessation of coin production likely won't happen in any of our lifetimes.  Contrary to what you wrote, it isn't too expensive to mint coins (in general).  In the US, this is true for nickels and pennies but not the other denominations.  And as someone else said, precious metals will still be highly valued and so people will still collect coins, even if they were to stop being minted.

Look at the newspaper industry.  Look at stamp collecting.  The world is a tough nut and manages to keep going despite technological advancement.

Maybe someday bitcoin foundation will release physical bitcoins :D
Hey, how about paper wallet? That's worth as bitcoin value right?

physical bitcoins ? Probably physical bitcoin wallet. Like paper wallet! Once the bitcoin in that wallet is spent, the physical bitcoin worths nothing!

What are you talking about?....Not expensive...hmf.  :o

The economic cost per year, for paper and minted coins is USD$ 28 Billion, compared to the Bitcoin mining cost of USD$ 0.78 Billion.
Source :  http://www.coindesk.com/microscope-conclusions-costs-bitcoin/

More detailed -- Here --> http://www.coindesk.com/microscope-real-costs-dollar/

If Bitcoin replace fiat... generations after us, will not be able to collect physical coins.

As cryptocurrecny takes place the fiat money gradually, numismatics will shift to collect altcoins, which have limited supply and are adopted by the masses increasingly. It will be easy for them to have this kind of hobby. Just the harddisk or u stick are fine.

You are talking of a far fetched future, which may not even happen. Even when crypto currencies replace other forms, there will be physical coins made as collector's items, like you see now.

This particular industry would do just fine.

Just kidding bro :P
Yes what I said paper wallet is worth as bitcoin value, thats enough to prove bitcoin can touched lol (although actually that's just wallet)

There are already a lot of people collecting bitcoins:

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m570.l1313&_nkw=casascius+coin&_sacat=0

Send them my way. I'll be happy to sell them as many Bitcoin Penny™ commemorative coins as their numismatic hearts desire. Different years. Different designs. Error coins. Rare coins. One-of-a-kind coins. It'll be Bitcoin Penn-demonium. ;D

Mostly Kidding,
Christopher

This. In the future when everything is digitallized, physical coins will be even more valuable from a collector's pov. The will be displayed in museums and kids will learn about it on the history books. It's meant to happen.

How do any of us adapt to a changing world, a dying capitalism? We do the same as our ancestors did in times of great suffering, we lean on each other until a new civilization forms within the corpse of the old.

Nothing !!! CryptoCurrencies are NOT going to wipe out Physical Coins/Legal Tender. Just like The Internet has not wiped out NewsPaper/Books Publishers. Both will co-exist.

http://www.thelocal.se/20141012/sweden-close-to-being-cashless-society-report

Some countries will be cashless soon enough. Not just from cryptocurrencies.

Actually I think crypto currencies are good for numismatics.  While coins are in decline, that is true today as well with electronic payments, and that does not mean that there will be a corresponding decline in coin collecting. 

Plus crypto solves a big problem for coin collectors, how to pay for coins.  Sites like amagimetals gives crypto the same discount they give cash.  That's nice as crypto is a lot less of a pain than a bank wire.

What are you talking about?....Not expensive...hmf.  :o

The economic cost per year, for paper and minted coins is USD$ 28 Billion, compared to the Bitcoin mining cost of USD$ 0.78 Billion.
Source :  http://www.coindesk.com/microscope-conclusions-costs-bitcoin/

More detailed -- Here --> http://www.coindesk.com/microscope-real-costs-dollar/

If Bitcoin replace fiat... generations after us, will not be able to collect physical coins.
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I assume you know what seniorage is, and that's what I meant.  I wasn't talking about the actual dollar amount it costs to mint a coin, but the difference between the face value of a coin and the cost to mint the same coin.  All coins other than the US penny and nickel make the government money.

Numismatics collect for the beauty, history, uniqueness, etc. of various coins and currency notes. Neither will have any long lasting effect on the other (outside of retail sales).

Would people trust the banking sector to fully rely on debit and credit card payments? { I would never do that, because the security for those technologies is flawed to say the least}

The other reason, why I would never trust ANY electronic payment method is simple.... These devices are glorified toasters... they fail when you need them the most.

That being said, I still think physical currencies should be retained as a "Offline" payment method. { People should still have a choice and a plan B, when digital payment methods fail }  ::)

That has already happened in all but the most rare base metal coins.

Philatelists (stamp collectors) are still around, although email has pretty much wiped out snail mail.
Numismatists will also be around, when Bitcoin is dominant. I don't see fiat getting wiped out.

It's already a very small industry, and a sudden shift to digital currency, could destroy it. As a young kid, I was a active collector of old coins and I enjoyed collecting foreign currency too.

I still have most of my collection, but almost all my friends stopped collecting at a early stage. {The boyfriend/girlfriend stage.. and then husband/wife stage}

I am saying, it would be sad, to see such a interresting industry, fade away into obscurity.  :(

I m not sure this is applicable. If you do not have a physical coin, people are not going to collect it as a hobby.

Numismatics are more popular than ever.  The hobby is more active than ever in history. It is collecting art and history at the same time. I can't see this growing trend and popularity of coin collecting plateauing, much less decreasing, given the world population is increasing faster than ever.
Rare, unique, and mint state coins will continue setting records in their desirability and monetary value for centuries to come.

Here is what I see happening:
They get filthy rich.

Why?
Because physical coins/currency will be a thing of the past, much like antiques or rare collectible items.
So their price will go sky high.