BTC vs. XBT

[btcusury]

The XBT initialism places Bitcoin on the same list as the government-backed fiat currencies, by conforming to the ISO 4217 standard (X__ is reserved for non-government-backed currencies, e.g. XAU for gold). So using XBT instead of BTC is to tacitly place Bitcoin within the system that cryptocurrencies are in the process of obsoleting.

Using XBT would also mean that altcoins must also conform to ISO 4217, so Litecoin might be XLT or XLC. Can you imagine all cryptocurrency symbols starting with an X? Terrible idea. This would also limit the number of cryptocoin symbols to about 660 (26^2-16).

So why do some people use XBT over BTC? What's the reasoning?

[Joshuar]

There is no reason no reason to use XBT over BTC

[lorix]

XBT would be so much cooler if it was used for XzibitCoin B)

[slaveforanunnak1]

[westkybitcoins]

Nothing to get worked up over. If it smooths Bitcoin's integration with others' labeling systems, it's no big deal; use what you like anyways. There's plenty of room for both (most people don't refer to gold as XAU in casual conversation.)

[franky1]

my countries code is GBP.. but i will always use 'quid' £ pound as words when describing the currency. ill leave GBP for the wall street guys to use.

we should not be trying to get bitcoin into wall street. we should be getting wall street into bitcoin

[Sukrim]

[...]
So using XBT instead of BTC is to tacitly place Bitcoin within the system that cryptocurrencies are in the process of obsoleting.
[...]
So why do some people use XBT over BTC? What's the reasoning?

There are still a lot of single humans out there, that own more money than all "BTC" are worth. The process you talk about might very well still take decades, even at current pace. Until then, not disrespecting Bhutan (a great country by the way) might be a nice thing to do.

Following existing standards is not a bad thing to do.

[btcusury]

Following the existing standard would make sense if Bitcoin was of the same type the standard was created to cover. Putting cryptocurrencies under/within the existing standard for fiat currency symbols implies that it is of the same type. But cryptocurrencies are a whole new technology, a vastly different invention, the purpose of which is to replace the old type of currency that requires trust, middlemen, authorization/permission, transfer limits, transfer fees, ridiculous delays, participation in a debt-generating usurious fractional-reserve scam, etc.

And what do you mean by disrespecting Bhutan? The Bhutanese ngultrum is represented as BTN (like the TV channel from V for Vendetta), not BTC. Appropriating the Thai bhat symbol, BTC, is perhaps a bit disrespectful though.

[franky1]

Following the existing standard would make sense if Bitcoin was of the same type the standard was created to cover. Putting cryptocurrencies under/within the existing standard for fiat currency symbols implies that it is of the same type. But cryptocurrencies are a whole new technology, a vastly different invention, the purpose of which is to replace the old type of currency that requires trust, middlemen, authorization/permission, transfer limits, transfer fees, ridiculous delays, participation in a debt-generating usurious fractional-reserve scam, etc.

And what do you mean by disrespecting Bhutan? The Bhutanese ngultrum is represented as BTN (like the TV channel from V for Vendetta), not BTC. Appropriating the Thai bhat symbol, BTC, is perhaps a bit disrespectful though.

bitcoin should not migrate to conform to the 'old type' of system i agree fully. but the old type of system is not about fiat. after al there are codes for wheat, poultry gold.. all of which are not fiat.

the old system though is about alot of bureaucracy and paying fee's to get accepted into special government "members clubs". bitcoin is about freedom.

we should avoid trying to get into these members clubs and get the members to prefer the freedoms of bitcoin rather then staying in they over-ruling and paperwork based financial system.  

i like the vertical lines of bitcoin and if that disrespects thailand. then australia has been disrespecting america for 100 years

[btcusury]

bitcoin should not migrate to conform to the 'old type' of system i agree fully. but the old type of system is not about fiat. after al there are codes for wheat, poultry gold.. all of which are not fiat.

Yes, but they are "non-standard" types of currency, hence the X__ assignation. XBT might be acceptable as ticker symbols for mainstream trading sites as they add Bitcoin, but do we want cryptocurrencies to be relegated to some "non-standard" category? Obviously not.

This has of course been discussed before, and some posters have seen the obvious problem with conforming to irrelevant/outdated standards:

No.  The naming system is a tacit endorsement of the idea that something issued by a government is more official then something that is not.   We should not voluntarily put ourselves in the X subbasement.

Right now, some of the establishment ignores B, another considers it a scam and a ponzi only fit for criminals, the third wants to kill it as a deadly competitor, and so on...

It's NOT "required" to follow their ISO.   You think you are going to "get Bitcoin accepted as a mainstream investment in the world's financial markets" by adopting their rules of the systems that B was made to make obsolete?   As the great Casascius saying goes, that would be "a screen-door submarine with a wood trim!"  

Bitcoin is an unprecedented entity, that was made to disrupt the old currency system - to be non-conformist, rather than suck up to the establishment.  

I think Bitcoin should have the code that it already has, and the establishment should just accept that, or call it whatever they wish, IF they ever actually accept it as a mainstream whatever.

Many people have been using the code BTC for bitcoins, which is clearly wrong. There exists a currency BTN (Bhutan, Ngultrum); BT is the country code for Bhutan. BTC, by the code rules, stands for Bhutan Colones, or Bhutan Crunchies, or Bhutan Calafragilistics. BTC is not Bitcoins.

The rules are pretty clear. Bitcoins are not issued by a nation state, so the code should start with X.

Peter Lambert proposes (or states as if obvious) that we "follow the rules" created by the very system that BTC threatens to obsolete. LOL. Then again, it was 2011 when he posted that.

As for Bhutan, now I understand what Sukrim meant. But this would only be relevant if following the conventions of ISO 4217.

[Kluge]

Pointless discussion: we have the Internet. I didn't know many currency codes until I Googled them. It takes 5 seconds to do at most. "BTC currency code" -- You want to buy Bitcoin on a conventional, large exchange in the future, that's all it takes.

I really doubt anyone will give half a damn that some organization has labeled Bitcoin as coming from "X," partially because I doubt more than .001% of people will even know what the Hell "X" means.

[Swordsoffreedom]

Pointless discussion: we have the Internet. I didn't know many currency codes until I Googled them. It takes 5 seconds to do at most. "BTC currency code" -- You want to buy Bitcoin on a conventional, large exchange in the future, that's all it takes.

I really doubt anyone will give half a damn that some organization has labeled Bitcoin as coming from "X," partially because I doubt more than .001% of people will even know what the Hell "X" means.

Brand name bitcoins just like they brand name gasoline Kluge
It's essentially the same but they can advertise it differently

[Kluge]

Pointless discussion: we have the Internet. I didn't know many currency codes until I Googled them. It takes 5 seconds to do at most. "BTC currency code" -- You want to buy Bitcoin on a conventional, large exchange in the future, that's all it takes.

I really doubt anyone will give half a damn that some organization has labeled Bitcoin as coming from "X," partially because I doubt more than .001% of people will even know what the Hell "X" means.

Brand name bitcoins just like they brand name gasoline Kluge
It's essentially the same but they can advertise it differently

Brand-name gasoline??? That's gotta be a European thing.

[btcusury]

Pointless discussion: we have the Internet. I didn't know many currency codes until I Googled them. It takes 5 seconds to do at most. "BTC currency code" -- You want to buy Bitcoin on a conventional, large exchange in the future, that's all it takes.

I really doubt anyone will give half a damn that some organization has labeled Bitcoin as coming from "X," partially because I doubt more than .001% of people will even know what the Hell "X" means.

The point of the discussion is to bring clarity as to the pros and cons of the community using BTC over XBT (as the ISO standard would have it), because some people are using XBT instead of BTC, creating some degree of confusion. A newcomer or businessperson might think: "These Bitcoin people can't even settle on what abbreviation they want to use!"

To settle on one or the other seems like a wise/clever thing to do.

[Swordsoffreedom]

Pointless discussion: we have the Internet. I didn't know many currency codes until I Googled them. It takes 5 seconds to do at most. "BTC currency code" -- You want to buy Bitcoin on a conventional, large exchange in the future, that's all it takes.

I really doubt anyone will give half a damn that some organization has labeled Bitcoin as coming from "X," partially because I doubt more than .001% of people will even know what the Hell "X" means.

Brand name bitcoins just like they brand name gasoline Kluge
It's essentially the same but they can advertise it differently

Brand-name gasoline??? That's gotta be a European thing.

Nice try Kludge
I was thinking American and was alluding towards boutique fuels in particular gasoline
http://www.api.org/policy-and-issues/policy-items/alternatives/us_gasoline_requirements

Here is a times article on the topic
http://business.time.com/2007/05/31/boutique_gas_and_high_prices/

[CryptoDomains]

How exactly are they deciding on the 2 letters to use after the X?

[Taras]

XBT for international markets, BTC for crypto markets

[davida]

So why XBT and not XBC?

[CryptoDomains]

Exactly what I was getting at, who decides first and second letter in first word vs. first letter of each word?

For example if the name was coinkiller would it be XCI or XCK?

[Kluge]

@SoF, that's not even remotely relevant to the discussion, then, since it has nothing to do with branding, but with differing state regulations on gasoline where some refiners and manufacturers are more inclined to cater to certain markets with particular regulations.

Pointless discussion: we have the Internet. I didn't know many currency codes until I Googled them. It takes 5 seconds to do at most. "BTC currency code" -- You want to buy Bitcoin on a conventional, large exchange in the future, that's all it takes.

I really doubt anyone will give half a damn that some organization has labeled Bitcoin as coming from "X," partially because I doubt more than .001% of people will even know what the Hell "X" means.

The point of the discussion is to bring clarity as to the pros and cons of the community using BTC over XBT (as the ISO standard would have it), because some people are using XBT instead of BTC, creating some degree of confusion. A newcomer or businessperson might think: "These Bitcoin people can't even settle on what abbreviation they want to use!"

To settle on one or the other seems like a wise/clever thing to do.

I got you, then, mostly. I don't see why anyone would try fighting the momentum and trying to use "XBT" in normal communications in the same way few people call the Baht a "THB."  (by the way, THB on Google with my particular location and search history [which has included the Baht] -- only one of the first five results is specifically for the Thai Baht, while the first result is for a bagel store)

Trying to use "XBT" just seems utterly futile at best, and, as you mention, confusing at worst if there becomes a significant amount of usage, perhaps outside of large, conventional currency exchanges which may accept BTC in the future (though Bitcoin's obviously very unique here, and maybe I am underestimating the impact of having multiple "official" abbreviations). I don't see why common-use vernacular should ever change to conform to some ISO ruleset, though, which is pretty much never done. We have "alkaline AA" batteries, not "LR6." Nobody would know what the Hell you were talking about if you went into a Target and asked if they carry "LR6s." I'd guess they'd point you over to their gun selection.