2013-11-23 Yahoo Finance - There's An Electronic Currency That Could Save The Ec

[BTCLuke]

Full title: "There's An Electronic Currency That Could Save The Economy — And It's Not Bitcoin"

Sounds like rumors of Fedcoin are finally here, fellas...  

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/theres-electronic-currency-could-save-121228399.html

So what's the answer?

University of Michigan economist Miles Kimball has developed a theoretical solution  to this problem in the form of a n electronic currency that would allow the Fed to bring nominal rates below zero to combat recessions. He's been presenting his plan to different economists and central bankers around the world.

If he's gotten this idea into Bernanke's fat little head then it would explain why Ben is not so aggressive against virtual currencies.

Of course someone will have to accept it first. Lulz.

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[501]

Clearly this is vastly inferior to Bitcoin, so why would anybody want it?

[Rygon]

Lol. Isn't our money that we save in the bank worth less anyways? I have a better idea than this. If you want to drive the interest rate lower, just have the central bank pay part of the interest rate on all new loans. People will be incentivized to take out more loans than before and drive up prices all over the place.

It can even be targeted to certain industries. Want to inflate another housing bubble? All new mortgages have the first 1% of the interest rate paid directly by the Feds. Need to give a handout to the car manufacturers? Uncle Same picks up 5% for the first 5 years! This is a pure Keynsian genius idea, lol.

[BTCLuke]

I can't think of a scenario where Fedcoin doesn't turn into a lulzapalooza.

If fedcoin is Not released open-source, then it simply cannot be trusted, and they'll make themselves into a laughingstock by all technophiles worldwide... Interview after interview on the news will end with: "But why can't we see the code like we can with bitcoin? What are they hiding? How do we know they can't recall any or all funds from your account? How do we know it won't be inflated? Who's going to trust a coin that has so many unknowns attached to it?"

If they DO make it open-source, then it's another altcoin. Bitcoin could then assimilate any new benefits from it!

Worse yet, it's an altcoin that libertarians will hate with a passion and they won't get many people to mine it, and therefore we'll likely see it 51% attacked hundreds of times until they give up.

I'm hoping for the second option... We'll get to see just how inept the gov's best crypto geeks are that way.

/popcorn.gif

[beetcoin]

I can't think of a scenario where Fedcoin doesn't turn into a lulzapalooza.

If fedcoin is Not released open-source, then it simply cannot be trusted, and they'll make themselves into a laughingstock by all technophiles worldwide... Interview after interview on the news will end with: "But why can't we see the code like we can with bitcoin? What are they hiding? How do we know they can't recall any or all funds from your account? How do we know it won't be inflated? Who's going to trust a coin that has so many unknowns attached to it?"

If they DO make it open-source, then it's another altcoin. Bitcoin could then assimilate any new benefits from it!

Worse yet, it's an altcoin that libertarians will hate with a passion and they won't get many people to mine it, and therefore we'll likely see it 51% attacked hundreds of times until they give up.

I'm hoping for the second option... We'll get to see just how inept the gov's best crypto geeks are that way.

/popcorn.gif

not saying i think it's a great idea or would work, but it would probably be a wallstreet/banks supported coin.. they could provide the technology/hardware to keep it afloat.

wallstreet/banks, if they invested in it, would dump a lot of money into it and then its shares would go up and up.

[HeliKopterBen]

Yes im sure a -5% interest rate would make fedcoin more attractive than bitcoin.

[User705]

The beauty about bitcoin is that you set your own interest rate of return by selling it when you are satisfied with the income you have made by holding on to it.  That's the exact opposite of this FedCoin BS.  Someone else wants to control your desire for a proper interest rate.  GL to them.  The more idiotic ideas the more people will seek an escape into bitcoin.

[knight22]

 I hope this gov altcoin will ease bitcoin exchanges  

[bitbouillion]

Essentially Kimball comes up with the concept of Freigeld. A slight difference of his idea is that the devaluation happens at the bank counter when a note is withdrawn or deposited.
http://www.dyndy.net/2011/01/freigeld-the-relational-ontology-of-money-in-practice/

[StarfishPrime]

Not possible. BitMint already solved this problem ages ago.

At least that's what the site said when I cashed out of bitcoin to buy BitMint.

[Bitcopia]

Ah yes, since 0% interest isn't low enough to create infinite resources from a finite planet, maybe -5% will do the trick. 

Silly Keynesians.