Is the world ready to embrace physical bitcoin?

[kudosinitchi]

The original and most famous physical version of Bitcoins was Casascius Coin, created by a guy in Utah named Mike Caldwell, which made of brass, with gold electroplating. This coin comes in different shapes, designs and forms.


A Casascius physical Bitcoin showing an eight-character code (Source: casascius.com)

This physical Bitcoins were pre-loaded or pre-funded with a certain amount of Bitcoin, such as 1, 5, 10, 100 or 1000 BTC. The coin also include both an identification number and a hidden private key.

The main reason for designing these coins was:

• To be used for the purchase of goods or services
• To facilitate the storage and/or management of Bitcoin
• To make them available for market transactions
• To act as an investment vehicle
• To be used for the purchase of goods or services

However, in 2013, Caldwell had to shut it down. The reason for shutting down was because of the intervention of FINCEN due to lack of required licensing to operate.

Certainly, the fact and provenly discussed, Bitcoin is not a thing and will never have a physical form. But what if the world suddenly change and opt to in physical form, are we ready to embrace it?

Sources:
https://phemex.com/academy/what-is-physical-bitcoin
https://www.cnet.com/culture/are-physical-bitcoins-legal/
https://www.analyticssteps.com/blogs/what-casascius-coin

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[mk4]

Adopting bitcoin as a physical asset is kinda like going backwards, no? Especially knowing that verifiability would be kinda difficult(unless you're using an Opendime, which is like $20 a piece). It's mostly a solution to a problem that isn't that that much of a 'problem' (aside from a few instances) in the first place.

[Upgrade00]

You should try resizing your images, as it makes it a bit difficult to read through the body of text.

• To be used for the purchase of goods or services
• To facilitate the storage and/or management of Bitcoin
• To make them available for market transactions
• To act as an investment vehicle
• To be used for the purchase of goods or services

Digital Bitcoin already serves all these purposes more efficiently than any physical form would, making it redundant to actually create one.
In fact, one of the qualities of Bitcoin is it's digital form. Making it easy to carry large amounts anywhere and exchange any fraction you want.

[asimi.io]

I don't think so there is any need of physical existence of Bitcoin. If you are gonna make the world digitalized, then no need to even think about physical Bitcoin. Bitcoin gonna change the world into digitalized.

[pooya87]

The original and most famous physical version of Bitcoins was Casascius Coin, created by a guy in Utah
Certainly, the fact and provenly discussed, Bitcoin is not a thing and will never have a physical form. But what if the world suddenly change and opt to in physical form, are we ready to embrace it?

If you think about this statement a little while looking at the world around you, it is obvious how silly it sounds. Forget about bitcoin for a moment, you can see that the world is moving towards become more digital and the physical form of money is slowly fading away. So why should bitcoin, the currency that was created to be digital from the start, go backwards and have a physical form?!

Besides, "Casascius" and other similar objects were never "physical form of bitcoin" regardless of what they named them. They were clearly a collectible that only collectors or super enthusiasts were gathering as a "fancy" object not as a physical currency. Most of the bullet points you provided as reasons were wrong.

[nc50lc]

Sorry but a "Physical Bitcoin" is impossible with the current protocol and I don't think there's a way to make an actual physical version of a bitcoin.

Those Casascius coins are actually just fancy "Paper Wallets".
For those who are unfamiliar with the term, here's the information about paper wallet: en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Paper_wallet
And since those paper wallets are made by another person, it's not even compliant with bitcoin's trustless system.

[dansus021]

I don't think so there is any need of physical existence of Bitcoin. If you are gonna make the world digitalized, then no need to even think about physical Bitcoin. Bitcoin gonna change the world into digitalized.

Agree 100% about this why we need physical bitcoin unless it can be used as merchandise rather than using physically we can using lightning network and make the transaction even faster for daily transaction or using some kind of crypto debit card. or using efficient chain but still crypto would be great

[sunsilk]

We're actually ready for both, physical and digital. We're from physical so that's not really a question anymore.

Knowing that we're on the digital age and that's what bitcoin is, having a physical coin that's pre funded is just going to be like a cold storage for someone who wants to keep it for long.

It will serve just like a memorabilia.

[Porfirii]

As some kind of merchandising, why not? It would be cool to be able to pay some sats from your pocket, with no need to use smartphones. Physical coins could become some sort of fetiche for many Bitcoin users, and help with adoption too.

[D ltr]

Characteristically, btc will disappear if it has physical properties, because as we know btc is digital money whose value is not felt like fiat, it's quite a hassle if a physical form is created,

[Ale88]

Sorry but a "Physical Bitcoin" is impossible with the current protocol and I don't think there's a way to make an actual physical version of a bitcoin.

Besides this, which is a very good point, people nowadays barely use cash because they mainly use phones to pay (Apple Pay, Google Pay, etc), what is the point to create a physically version of something that was born to be digital? Would you use a horse to move your car? It's the same thing.

[fiulpro]

No 😂
We already have paper wallets, do you see people giving them around? I am aware of some instances where people did give paper wallets to waiters etc.. but how usual it is ?
It is not safe, not tradable, can't be converted easily to online version, does need valid third party on the go to make it happen. The current system does need KYC you think that won't? That won't be governed by a body? You do have fiat to exchange, what would you even do with it? The coffee is 4.50$.. here have a physical Bitcoin! Np keep the change. Sorry sir the value just went down ! You gotta pay more.

[2stout]

The world is already embracing "physical" bitcoin on a smaller scale that seems to be significantly increasing.  Of course bitcoin is digital but the "physical" bitcoin is the physical manifestation of the digital, sort of like the reverse of an NFT where the digital is representing the physical.  They have proven to be popular collectibles with general collectors and numismatics alike.  Links below for your viewing pleasure.

https://www.greatcollections.com/kb/Casascius-Bitcoin-Sells-for-169-million-at-GreatCollections-t437-4.html
https://www.stacksbowers.com/News/Pages/PressReleases.aspx?ArticleID=physical-lealana-bitcoin-sold-at-stacks-for-large-premium
https://stacksbowers.com/news/pages/pressreleases.aspx?ArticleID=physical-cryptocurrency-june-2022

[Henrobakkara]

Certainly, the fact and provenly discussed, Bitcoin is not a thing and will never have a physical form. But what if the world suddenly change and opt to in physical form, are we ready to embrace it?

Sources:
https://phemex.com/academy/what-is-physical-bitcoin
https://www.cnet.com/culture/are-physical-bitcoins-legal/
https://www.analyticssteps.com/blogs/what-casascius-coin

So who is going to be doing the printing of the physical Bitcoin? or is everyone with some Bitcoin be able to make their own physical copy? Is this just going to be for Hodlers with on full Bitcoin or satoshis owners too should be able to make their own satoshi physical copies too? This is not going to work as I see it regardless of what it will solve.

[dothebeats]

Wouldn't that be nonsense if ever? As the world is already minimizing the usage of physical cash with the use of credit/debit cards and mobile applications, here we are reintroducing the old system to the modern people. Casascius coins are a thing of beauty, no doubt, and IMO they should be use more as a collector's item or a thing of novelty rather than a means to pay/get paid. Also, who would be the one who'd issue these physical coins anyway? They won't do it for free that's for sure, so aside from the loaded amount on the coin, you have to pay for the coin itself as well.

I'll stick to paper wallets if ever, thank you.

[teosanru]

This makes no sense at all. The target of bitcoin was not only to cut down fiat but also to make transactions easier and less bulky. If eventually we are creating a physical coin that is going to contain bitcoin and we will have to carry it in order to make transactions it defeats the purpose of bitcoin itself. The question itself, therefore, is wrong. The question shouldn't be that is the world ready to embrace such a thing. Moreover, the problem that was there in 2013 will still persist as eventually, some private company will have to do this thing which means chances are it will have a lot of control over it's creation and usage.

[_BlackStar]

If you think about this statement a little while looking at the world around you, it is obvious how silly it sounds. Forget about bitcoin for a moment, you can see that the world is moving towards become more digital and the physical form of money is slowly fading away. So why should bitcoin, the currency that was created to be digital from the start, go backwards and have a physical form?!

I think the OP just misunderstood how he should understand the meaning of developing a financial system that now more people are adopting digital systems than physical ones. Even if it is fiat, many people are starting to use online payment systems and that is an expected development.

Of course we are not talking about how money circulates in traditional markets but it is more of a global market which is expected to be more developed. So the physical financial system and physical money circulation will now be much less so that Satoshi really knows how bitcoin will be a good pioneer as a decentralized digital financial system development. If in 2009 I couldn't pay for cigarettes and coffee digitally, then now I don't have to move to pay for anything from my smartphone.

[Slow death]

thinking about some physical bitcoin is the most useless thing that could exist, I'm sorry but how would someone like me who lives in a third world country buy these physical bitcoins? let's see:

1 - I would have to go to the website where they sell physical bitcoin

2 - I would have to pay the physical bitcoin (I have to give my real address)

3 - when the physical bitcoin arrived in my country I would have to pay taxes

Now think that on every physical bitcoin I would have to pay tax which is very high in my country, and if I wanted to have a lot of physical bitcoins I would have to pay a lot of money just with taxes, so even if I wanted to buy it to make Hodl at the end of the day I wouldn't have much profit and if I wanted to buy something in my country then I would be crazy, because it wouldn't make sense to buy a physical bitcoin and wait days, pay high tax and then take the physical bitcoin and go buy something that costs 10$ at my parents' store

[DoublerHunter]

No 😂
We already have paper wallets, do you see people giving them around? I am aware of some instances where people did give paper wallets to waiters etc.. but how usual it is ?
It is not safe, not tradable, can't be converted easily to online version, does need valid third party on the go to make it happen. The current system does need KYC you think that won't? That won't be governed by a body? You do have fiat to exchange, what would you even do with it? The coffee is 4.50$.. here have a physical Bitcoin! Np keep the change. Sorry sir the value just went down ! You gotta pay more.

^ Definitely right and that Casascius Coin is just a wallet, not a BTC, physical coin is nothing if the wallet is empty, it could be decorative probably or a souvenir but that it, nothing more. There is no physical BTC, BTC is a digital currency and it has been proven so many years that digital cryptocurrency like BTC is always good and ready to dominate physical money. You can create as many as you can a Casascius Coin in different precious metals if you want but BTC you cant create in your own.

[Stalker22]

I really do not see any use for a physical representation of digital currency other than as a collector's item. It also seems like the coin would be of questionable value to anyone using it. They would still have to be connected to the blockchain in some way to verify its value. Not to mention that physical representations of bitcoins are much more susceptible to theft.