Bitcoin is just a speculative asset, not money?

[CrystalPham]

The change in price does not make bitcoin a reasonable currency.
Bitcoin can not become a currency for two main reasons: its value is unstable and trading time is too slow.

[1714059518]

1714059518

[1714059518]

1714059518

[1714059518]

1714059518

[franky1]

money and currency are 2 different things

think of currency as a umbrella term for anything people want to trade.
married couple, exchange sexual favours for gifts at valentine/birthdays is a currency.. yes sex is a currency
prisoners, exchange cigarettes or chocolate pudding between inmates.. yep cigarettes and desserts are currency
friends, exchange a bottle of beer for having a friend help them with fixing their car or doing a bit of DIY. yep favours and alcohol are currency

anything can be a currency. and yes bitcoin is a currency.

now that part is sorted.
..

"money" is a sub category of currency with specific limitations, definitions and utility.
for instance its just a widely known and accepted medium of exchange usually accepted nationally by that nation wrote on the banknote.
(yes some retailers dont do cash transactions and only want credit cards so even bank notes are not 100% accepted everywhere)
(yes some retailers dont do credit cards and only want cash transactions so even credit cards are not 100% accepted everywhere)

an asset is another sub category of currency. with its own definitions and utility, this is more of a value store with only the occassional use as a medium of exchange
antique furniture/art
gold coins/jewellery
company shares
bitcoin

bitcoin is essentially an asset currency

[wantjokull]

The change in price does not make bitcoin a reasonable currency.
Bitcoin can not become a currency for two main reasons: its value is unstable and trading time is too slow.

It is true because to form a currency bitcoin needs to go under regulatory changes and have some sort of stable value in regards with the products and services that are offered through out the nation. For example, dollar bill is always dollar bill no matter what happens to the gold or oil rig in the New Jersey! The value can correlate a lot about the currency and the demand so it should be stable in that terms also. Whenever there is more demand government starts pushing the prices for the products and services so that treasury can be filled with huge bucks while keeping the prices of one dollar bill same as the previous one dollar bill.

Now considering the bitcoin, it doesn't fit in this scenario properly because it is decentralised and can not be stabilised without any hard cap. The value of the coin itself grows up and down once there is bad or good news in the market about it. It behaves more or less like an asset than the currency.

[Tharel]

Bitcoin is considered as virtual currency and a speculative asset since it's value changes from time to time depending on the market. It is not similar to money. Money has physical form and is used as medium of exchange. Compared to bitcoin, money's value is fixed or is stable over time.

[heureca]

The change in price does not make bitcoin a reasonable currency.
Bitcoin can not become a currency for two main reasons: its value is unstable and trading time is too slow.

Concerning BTC volatility - every criptocurrency has the same volatility. So following your logic we can't use any criptocurrency for payment purpose. Yes, criptocurrency market is very volatile but it is new market and its stability will be the next step of this market development

[ivakar]

Yes, I think bitcoin is more the asset, like a gold or oil, then money though you can still pay with it for something
and the main problem of course, high price's fluctuation.

[Olrac]

Bitcoin is a virtual and speculative asset as it's value changes often which is caused by several factors. Being inconsistent or volatile is one of it's main characteristics that's why it is also called bubble investment. It's not considered as money because money is tangible and has a specific value over time.

[CryptoBry]

The change in price does not make bitcoin a reasonable currency.
Bitcoin can not become a currency for two main reasons: its value is unstable and trading time is too slow.

That depends on how do you define a currency...if it is a medium of exchange then Bitcoin is one but if you mean that Bitcoin should be behaving just like any other fiat currency (dollar, yuan, pound, et al) then maybe Bitcoin is not...yet! The big reason for the volatility is that people are speculating on Bitcoin but if the same kind of treatment will be given to any fiat money the same volatility will be exhibited.

[fuer44]

when I first got to know bitcoin, I also thought bitcoin was an asset, not money. I think bitcoin is like digital gold, a holding this asset and get a profit in the future when the price goes up.

[maulana rifai]

The change in price does not make bitcoin a reasonable currency.
Bitcoin can not become a currency for two main reasons: its value is unstable and trading time is too slow.

indeed bitcoin cannot be compared with fiat money because fiat money has a value that is stable and has a real shape. while bitcoin depends on the market price. so that bitcoin is able to exceed fiat money price and sometimes price goes down.

[Siopao]

It's true that bitcoin is a speculative asset where there is no fixed value, frequent movement of price can be expected. However I don't believe it's ending soon. It can still stand for a long time, and can be consider for long term investment that in anytime can be converted into money.

[Karakyli]

Bitcoin is not money in the classical sense. From the classical properties of money - absolute liquidity, the ability to measure the value of goods and the preservation of value - it is stretched to a stretch corresponds only to the first. At present, it is a good tool for speculative investments, but it is not a tool for reliable calculations, savings or the equivalent of value.

[Marry Finch]

Bitcoin could become a world currency, but only if it manages to overcome the fierce resistance of central banks and governments, which it threatens with the loss of levers of influence on the economy.
Crypto currency is a new kind of assets that are represented only as records in a distributed database (locker) with the guarantee of unchangeability (protection against forgery of records), transparent to all users and partially anonymous.

[alyssa85]

If the legislatures of Arizona and Georgia allow people to pay tax in crypto, then cryptocurrency becomes money.

Anything a govt will accept in lieu of taxes is money. At the moment it's just fiat (they won't let you pay in gold, which makes gold an asset). So if crypto makes the tax breakthrough, it will be huge.

[VitKoyn]

The change in price does not make bitcoin a reasonable currency.
Bitcoin can not become a currency for two main reasons: its value is unstable and trading time is too slow.

There is no doubt that Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency are highly volatile which means the value can easily drop or increased by 5% in short period of time, so it will be hard to use as a currency that we can use to purchase something. Bitcoin was designed to be a currency to be use as payment method but people see it more as an asset or a store of value than can give them huge profit but it doesn't mean that Bitcoin can't be use as what it was intended to do. There are shops or businesses that are already accepting Bitcoin to pay their services or products.

[nazaididuan1]

BTC is not money, it is just a part of transport channels in the container, if you believe that it can put anything in, of course, you will find something across the channel to receive, if can't find, here can't take out anything that might rot and worthless, it is this risk.

[imapessimist]

The volatility is good for day traders.  There must be quite a lot of profit to be made there with all this price up and down not even every day but sometimes in a few minutes.  But as an asset for a lot of people it's too unstable I think.  Say I am saving for a deposit for a house and have two Bitcoins worth.  So at this very minute I have 20K but next week I might only have 16k.  But I might have 24K.  It's no good really at the present time with all this movement in price.  OK if constantly going up.  But not OK if dropping. 

[Juggy777]

The change in price does not make bitcoin a reasonable currency.
Bitcoin can not become a currency for two main reasons: its value is unstable and trading time is too slow.

Wait so you're telling me all the major currencies remain stable? Is that what you're telling me? Look at other currencies they keep on fluctuating a hell lot. Bitcoins does fluctuate a lot but it gives you the best returns that no other asset class will give you. For me it's the best currency out there. You should really see it with a open mind.

[rybakov]

The change in price does not make bitcoin a reasonable currency.
Bitcoin can not become a currency for two main reasons: its value is unstable and trading time is too slow.

You are true to some extent. But for items in the range of $1000 or above can still be transacted with bitcoins. The seller is also in advantage when prices increase in future.

[Harlot]

So if the U.S. Dollar became too volatile or unstable it will not be considered as money by their own people? Will it also be called as an speculative asset just like what you said? Its volatility does not affect its functions as a currency, the sad thing about it is Bitcoin being decentralized a lot of people are taking advantage to take profit from it and is overshadowing its use as a currency. But now all things are looking good for Bitcoin lately I can have high and reliable transaction speeds with just 14,000 Satoshis of network fees which is really cheap. Now it is more appealing to use Bitcoin as a currency hopefully this will be a start to businesses to accept Bitcoin again.