Bitcoin Forum

it is proven psychologically people slow down a lot in buying stocks with more than 2-digit prices. so they do stock splits of say 1-10 and break the stocks into smaller pieces. the prices start from $10 and climb all over again.

sure 10 $20 split stocks is equal to one $200 stock, you argue, so why do people buy one and not the other? it's just human nature.

unfortunately Bitcoins cannot do stock splits so once it hits $100 or more people will not stomach the prices.

you then say people can just buy 0.1 of Bitcoin but then that decimal point also turn people off in itself.

Great point.

How can we split the currency?
 ::)

It's not a stock, but that's besides the point.

http://www.wertpapier-forum.de/uploads/post-834-1159961759_thumb.gif

There is no need for a currencysplit.

Bitcoin can functionally do a 'stock split' by moving the decimal point in the client's default display setting..

You can't buy 0.00001 of a stock.

I imagine this wouldn't happen until the BTC value passes at least one or two decimal places past 100USD though - what do you think creighto?

Yeah, triple digits really put the brakes on Apple and Google.  ::)

I wanted to do it back in November.

What was your reasoning for wanting to do it back then?

 ::) Berkshire?

it's silly to think there isn't any money smart enough to value a company correctly after it's completely arbitrary nominal value is a certain length. Just arb this shit if you believe it.

I wanted to get it done before the userbase grew too large to do it easily.

Very wise indeed. The longer we wait the more painful it gets and I think it's already quite late but on the other hand might be just the right timing (I don't think it will take very long until BTC / $ hits 100). I kind of liked the multi-step solution that Rocketfella proposed in:

Solution: How to shift the decimal
http://forum.bitcoin.org/index.php?topic=13495.0

The idea is basically to go from 1 BTC to 1,000,000 uBTC and once everyone is using uBTC consistently, drop the u.

In another thread, started by ... ah ... the one I'm just replying to ...

Shift the decimal point over?
http://forum.bitcoin.org/index.php?topic=13144.0

there's also a little informal poll with 88 people (atm) saying "Yes!  I wanna be a Bitcoin Millionare!", 31 saying "No!  I prefer counting zeros!" and 10 saying "Wait, what?"

In that thread I made the point that shifting 6 digits is actually a "bugfix" because I consider "21 million BTC max" an actual bug for a global currency. I think it kind of made sense to start with that - but the sooner we switch to "21 trillion BTC max", the better because it simply feel more "realistic" for a global currency (the maths obviously not the problem but how people perceive the idea).

Isn't moving the decimal point just a display issue, though? If the next Bitcoin client has support for milles, it shouldn't stop people from using, them, or? If someone receives a sum smaller than the current minimum, then that's just an incentive to upgrade. Or am I missing something?

As mentioned above, Berkshire Hathaway's stock has been in the 5 digits for ages, and is currently in the 6's at over $110,000 per stock.

It still yields steady profits every year and people buy it.
Stock price digits have nothing to do with what people buy or don't buy.

Except that you can't buy 0.1 stocks of BH. You can buy 0.1 bitcoins.

I'm interested in seeing this psychological proof you speak of.

Or we simply start trading bitcents?
I can't come up with a good abbreviation though.

This is silly. You often have to buy stock in blocks of 100. Meaning someone has to have $10,000+ to invest in a $100+ stock. Bitcoins can be purchased in lots of .00000001. The "psychology" of one simply can't be compared to the other.

With 0.01 transaction fees each transaction, they effectively can't.  Even with the new client's 0.005 fee it's still not viable to buy in those denominations.

I realize I am pointing out another issue separate from this thread's topic, but both should be fixed.

Sadly, this simple and elegant solution to the biggest issue bitcoin in practical use has is being ignored so far :)

Actually you just think people won't buy stocks over $100 a share because that is the standard range of prices in the US.

In some other countries, stocks are traditionally split when they reach 2 digits.  Other countries not until they reach 4.

Also remember that we're talking about a currency here, not a stock and the idea that such a new one can be valued at 20-30 times more than a USD is going to be a tough notion for many people to accept. Sure, rationally, the units shouldn't make a difference, but people are not especially rational. I don't think there's a good argument against moving the decimal place aside for the hassle it could create.

Yes there is one argument against.

It will not sound as impressive with a bitcoin thats worth $21 instead of $210.

So it will probably not get at all as much publicity. Since the split wont be mentioned or will not be comprehended by avarage joe.

But. I´m still for it.

Since people will have a hard time buying a small part of a coin and the 21 million makes it sound not that credible unless you look into it.

So maybe we should wait until it reaches $100 which will give it publicity.

Sooner or later it should be done.