Bitcoin as a speculative asset or as currency

[Charles-Tim]

I just read in a news that ASI president Rich Checkan said CBDCs were concocted in hell by Satan himself. Although, he has a good reason for saying this, it is distinctly obvious that CBDC transactions will be transparent in a way government can know how citizens are depositing and withdraw funds, it will even be worse if compared to fiat in relation to privacy. For privacy reasons, decentralized currencies like Bitcoin evolved to make privacy possible, Bitcoin gives freedom in a way your money (bitcoin) can not be monitored by the government, that void of privacy which could be horrible.

Bitcoin was compared to gold while Bitcoin is said to still be a speculative asset, gold that has been existing for long as a store of value. But Bitcoin adoption is increasing, the institutions that are offering their clients Bitcoin are increasing. Jamie Dimon, the Chief Executive Officer of JPMorgan Chase called Bitcoin a fraud in the past, but JPMorgan Chase are now offering Bitcoin to a range of clients. Although, if Bitcoin is still classified as a speculative asset, the institutions are investing in it because they know it will later certainly be a store of value.

It is said that the central banks are nervous about Bitcoin to be used as a currency but just as a store of value like gold and silver. That if Bitcoin is emerging as a currency, going mainstream and people using it as direct payment, this can still lead to governments trying all possible means to intervene which can be the biggest issue and threat towards Bitcoin adoption. That governments power and influence over their people are their currency, and government will not want to lose the control.

Is Bitcoin still yet a speculative asset or a store of value? I think people will have different opinions about this.
Also bitcoin high transaction fee, is it not related to this? Because the lower the fee the more Bitcoin will fit into the currency category.

The interview was quite interesting: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=VUvp9X8UTws&feature=youtu.be
https://www.kitco.com/news/2021-07-27/-Central-bank-digital-currencies-were-concocted-in-hell-by-Satan-himself-Rich-Checkan.html

[Kittygalore]

It's a bit annoying but I still believe that it is a combination of both speculative asset and currency, because I believe that it can do the work of those two, I mean Laszlo has used bitcoin for two pizzas right so I don't think that we can't discount the fact that it can be used like a currency entirely.

[noorman0]

Bitcoin has actually been accepted and used as an alternative means of payment in several companies or services. That is, bitcoin is in accordance with its purpose written in the whitepaper. But I somewhat agree that for now bitcoin is only a speculative asset for residents in countries that do not allow bitcoin as a means of payment.

For those who hold bitcoins, it should not be considered the same that they are investing (speculative assets). Let's say a company keeps bitcoin as liquidity for its services in the future while waiting for the government's decision on legality.

[hugeblack]

CBDCs will be of great benefit to countries, as monitoring and controlling money and therefore individuals will be very easy, but the problem lies in reducing the size of banks, which is something that most countries do not like now.

As for the reason why JPMorgan increased their activity in Bitcoin, it is that customers want it, not the bank, and therefore Bitcoin is still classified as a speculative asset and not a currency.

[mindrust]

If people use it as a currency rather than trading it, it becomes a currency.

Since people trade it more than using it as a currency, it is more like a speculative asset lately.

Most people I know don't want to know about bitcoin's use cases. They just want to get rich.

[Republikcoin.com]

If people use it as a currency rather than trading it, it becomes a currency.

Since people trade it more than using it as a currency, it is more like a speculative asset lately.

Most people I know don't want to know about bitcoin's use cases. They just want to get rich.

Sad, but it's true. They come with the aim of making money from Bitcoin which is nothing but speculation. Bitcoin is popular because many people think this is the fastest medium to earn money from home without the need for hard work, without the need to leave the house. A package along with a pandemic that limits our activities.
Even so, with new people getting to know Bitcoin, Bitcoin's existence is increasingly mainstream and easy to recognize.

[BrewMaster]

bitcoin is both.
it is designed to be a currency and eventually it will be used as a currency but since it is being adopted and the price keeps on rising with big percentage gains guaranteed it will also be treated as a speculative asset. interesting thing is that whenever the price is rising people tend to use it as a currency more too. it probably has something to do with not wanting to sell but at the same time wanting to enjoy the gains.

transaction fees will surely play an important role in all this but they are very low at 1 satoshi/byte most of the times. also imagine if you had bought bitcoin at $30k when the recent discount was given, do you care if you pay $5 fee when the price of bitcoin reaches $300k in a couple of months? the 10x purchase power increase makes it so that nobody would care.

[haidil]

there is nothing wrong if it is currently referred to as a speculative asset. Because considering we all have made the price of Bitcoin vary from time to time. It is so often juxtaposed with the manipulation of prices by the pope-adjusted on-demand.
As for the relationship with the CBDC which is often implicated, it is very clear that the government is using the same control pattern that Bitcoin does not have. In simple terms, the government wants to know how much finance it has, then uses it as a reference as tax data.

[arallmuus]

Is Bitcoin still yet a speculative asset or a store of value? I think people will have different opinions about this.

Its a speculative asset because unlike gold, bitcoin's price is not stable and cant be considered as store as value asset. Some older folks are investing in gold to save the value of their money against inflation while most people are investing in bitcoin to increase the value of the money because its pretty speculative

Because the lower the fee the more Bitcoin will fit into the currency category.

One of the requirement that a currency need to have is to maintain the value stability. In this case, if I pay 0.001 bitcoin then I'd expect the value will stay the same but you know how volatile it is with bitcoin. 0.001 bitcoin today will have a different value in a week or so and it cant fit the requirement to be a currency

Even the El Salvadorans are protesting about it after their country made it as one of the legal tender

[macson]

snip

In my view, Bitcoin is a speculative asset as well as a currency, directly Bitcoin is both.  you can make transactions with Bitcoin wherever you are, and you can hold your BTC in the long term until the price goes up.  you are free to make your Bitcoin in the form of assets or currencies.

[jinneas]

Bitcoin can be used as both an asset and currency, and it has two properties at the same time.
As an asset

• Bitcoin is volatile and its price is unstable. If you use Bitcoin to buy goods, sometimes the price fluctuations may exceed the price of the goods themselves, and this situation cannot be used as currency for payment.
• The total amount of Bitcoin is fixed and will not be issued at will. When the demand for Bitcoin increases, its price will show an upward trend, and investment in Bitcoin will gain more benefits.

As currency
In some places, Bitcoin is allowed for daily payments, and even countries such as El Salvador use Bitcoin as legal tender.

[awik p]

For me bitcoins are a currency that has been a very good vehicle to store value. Similar to the Swiss Franc it is officially a currency, but most investors look at it as an asset. If we managed to buy bitcoins around 10,000 USD we stored our value for a long time, and even have the chance to profit from a price increase. The most important part for me as a currency is that it can't be diluted by just printing more of it.

At first bitcoin was intended as a means of payment, but over time until now, bitcoin is more inclined to assets and trading. this is related because many countries have not ratified it and until now have seen the fact that bitcoin has not been effective in its original function, indeed the advantage of cryptocurrency is that it has a limited supply, so that the more someone needs it, the more it can increase the value of its offer, therefore frankly at this time I personally enjoy bitcoin more to make money

[Renampun]

...

because I still can't use Bitcoin for shopping then I think Bitcoin is a speculative asset...

My country's regulation of Bitcoin is that 'you can't pay for anything with btc because the only rupiah is recognized as a means of payment, bitcoin can only be traded like a trading investment asset'

[zanezane]

Can it be both because I believe that bitcoin is comprised of factors that is unique to currency and speculative asset. Plus there's nothing wrong with both because it adds some character of some sort to bitcoin being debated whether it's an asset or a currency.

[DU18]

Can it be both because I believe that bitcoin is comprised of factors that is unique to currency and speculative asset. Plus there's nothing wrong with both because it adds some character of some sort to bitcoin being debated whether it's an asset or a currency.

both are functions and benefits that we can get from bitcoin, both as a speculative investment asset and as a digital currency, but as citizens of course we must follow all regulations issued by our country regarding the use of bitcoin, and in my country bitcoin it can only be used as an investment asset and will get punished if you use bitcoin as a currency (a payment/purchase transaction tool), and that's why I personally prefer bitcoin as an investment asset because there are state regulations that I have to follow, but it's different with other people who live in el salvador today, those who live in salvador already have the freedom to use bitcoin both as an investment asset and as a currency because the el salvador government has completely legalized cryptocurrency in their country.

[Gozie51]

Is Bitcoin still yet a speculative asset or a store of value? I think people will have different opinions about this.

Yes opinions will be diversed. This question has been asked in different ways since inception of bitcoin. The purpose of bitcoin is being achieved in the both questions. We need to remember that bitcoin is freedom and as that, it works in the financial system to leverage on the loopholes on fiat. Fiat is more of straight kind of legal tender which bitcoin has not totally attain and or maybe not but it will keep operating as both speculative asset and store of value.

It operates as speculatory because it is staked and traded but the difference is that it is not regulated, this is what also gives it the store of value status just like gold.

[The Sceptical Chymist]

Is Bitcoin still yet a speculative asset or a store of value? I think people will have different opinions about this.
Also bitcoin high transaction fee, is it not related to this? Because the lower the fee the more Bitcoin will fit into the currency category.

I don't know much about CBDCs at all, but I'm pretty sure they're not going to be a good thing for anyone other than banks and governments.

With respect to the question above, this has been asked and discussed so many times on the forum that it probably doesn't warrant another thread.  You're correct that people have all sorts of opinions as to whether bitcoin is a store of value, a currency, an instrument of speculation, or whatever--and the truth is that it's all of these things (which is why it's kind of silly to even argue about it).  However, as far as the store of value function, I'm not quite sure how good bitcoin is in that respect--but only because of its notorious volatility.  It's certainly not a safe-haven asset like gold or silver are, but it can be used to store value.  The problem is whether the value is going to drop by 30% overnight or go to the moon.  Bitcoin has a tendency to go crazy in both directions from time to time.

[paxmao]

Is Bitcoin still yet a speculative asset or a store of value? I think people will have different opinions about this.
Also bitcoin high transaction fee, is it not related to this? Because the lower the fee the more Bitcoin will fit into the currency category.

I don't know much about CBDCs at all, but I'm pretty sure they're not going to be a good thing for anyone other than banks and governments.

With respect to the question above, this has been asked and discussed so many times on the forum that it probably doesn't warrant another thread.  You're correct that people have all sorts of opinions as to whether bitcoin is a store of value, a currency, an instrument of speculation, or whatever--and the truth is that it's all of these things (which is why it's kind of silly to even argue about it).  However, as far as the store of value function, I'm not quite sure how good bitcoin is in that respect--but only because of its notorious volatility.  It's certainly not a safe-haven asset like gold or silver are, but it can be used to store value.  The problem is whether the value is going to drop by 30% overnight or go to the moon.  Bitcoin has a tendency to go crazy in both directions from time to time.

A long standing discussion yes indeed. The original idea behind bitcoin was to use it as a means for transactions, peer to peer, not fully anonymous but not fully named, uncontrollable and unstoppable. After a few considerations, the community did not reach an agreement so some bitcoin forks occurred, namely bitcoin cash being the most notable and oriented to a lower fee, making it similar to a currency.

As for bitcoin, there are two main reasons to consider it a store of value. Firstly, it is a fact that the amount that is traded is low in comparison with the stores. Secondly, the blocksize is limited so in case too many transactions occur, it actuates as self-regulating brake.

[pinggoki]

Bitcoin is originally meant to be a permanent replacement to fiat currency, but since people found profit in investing and holding bitcoins nowadays, it worked best as a speculative asset.  Still, I believe that the moment bitcoin's volatility and high processing time and fees are solved, which is very possible in the near future considering technology advances exponentially, we could see bitcoin acting more in line with its intended purpose. But as of now, I think it's all okay that it's used by millions around the world to get by amidst this pesky pandemic situation.

Can it be both because I believe that bitcoin is comprised of factors that is unique to currency and speculative asset. Plus there's nothing wrong with both because it adds some character of some sort to bitcoin being debated whether it's an asset or a currency.

Agreeing with you on this. Bitcoin is pretty much offering the best of both worlds, offering limitless transactions across the planet, and some form of profitability too to those who see it as an investment venture. We also couldn't deny the fact that even now, there are multitudes of bitcoin holders who both use it as an online currency, and as a way to earn money too.

[Darker45]

Is Bitcoin still yet a speculative asset or a store of value?

This is a lingering question and it is hard to choose one primarily because Bitcoin functions as both. As a matter of fact, in addition, we cannot deny that even though it is seldom used it is also functioning as a currency right at this very moment, a legal tender even in a sovereign country starting September 8 this year. But people are also speculating on Bitcoin at the same time. Not only are they keeping their wealth on Bitcoin, they are also looking forward to capital gains. So I guess it is not either of the two but all of the above.