What if bitcoin become soooo successful that people stop spending it?

[Alpha1999]

Yesterday i was reading a book The Bitcoin standard by Saifedeans Ammous and an interesting question raised in my mind that What if bitcoin become so successful as a store of value that people stop using it.Suppose if i people believes that bitcoin could be worth much more in the future they would prefer to to hold it rather than using it for everyday purchases.Even if sellers or venders accepts bitcoin they will still choose to pay in their local currency while keeping bitcoins untouchable.So an interesting situation will happen mostly holders will treat it as a long term investment so its everyday use would be extremely slow.In my opinion i dont think that holding or keeping bitcoin would be bad thing like its a good decision to save for future but their is a difference between an asset that people wants to own and a currency that feel comfortable spending.May be easier access to Bitcoin payment,lower transaction costs and better payment infrastructure may help solve this.
So my question is
Is it a sign of success that people keep holding bitcoins as a store of value rather than spending it or a failure at becoming widely use currency?
I want to here different opinions especially from people who actually used bitcoins for payments rather than simply holding it.

[Joy_learns_crypto]

Isn't that what is going on, people are hodling Bitcoin rather than spending because to a big part of the world population Bitcoin is already successful and many investors believes Bitcoin will carry this success into the future.
There are people that aren't even ready to sell to pay for their medical bills.
Adoption is a sign of success, high value is a sign of success, staying decentralized is a sign of continuous success. But the outstanding qualities in financial transactions that Bitcoin has over any currency will make people spend it, I think we will get to the stage where Bitcoin quality and utilities will be inevitable.

[Alvin_talk]

This scenario is not possible for every user.

First of all, bitcoin success is subjective and depends on what each individuals view as success. For some persons, bitcoin is already a huge success, whereas for others bitcoin success is when 1BTC hits a million dollar. Yet, even among those who already consider Bitcoin successful, there are people buying, selling, and spending it.

There is no stock or asset in the world that will be held till infinity because it is seen as very valuable asset including bitcoin. There are so many reason and goals as to why people invest; may be for retirement, while another may be saving for the future of their kids, for expensive medication/surgery that they need to perform and maybe to buy a mansion for themselves or maybe just to hold for a time frame and make profit. This means that if retirement comes, such user will liquidate all or some of their holdings regardless of how valuable bitcoin has become. The same goes to the man investing solely for his kids and so on.

Also, as the saying goes, tomorrow is indeed pregnant, so we might find our self in a situation that will require us to sell even if our original intention was to hold.

[coinrifft]

If that is the case then every service that we have will die, like exchanges. So I doubt that this scenario is going to happen in Bitcoin. Of course, you can hold it as long as you can. But there will be times that you will have to sell it at some point.

We have seen like Satoshi era Bitcoin holders that have sold in the last couple of years. Even poster boy Michael Saylor himself who says that he is not going to sell did sell some of their stash to pay off dividends.

There are thousands of reasons why Bitcoiners are going to sell.

[Don Pedro Dinero]

Isn't that what is going on, people are hodling Bitcoin rather than spending because to a big part of the world population Bitcoin is already successful and many investors believes Bitcoin will carry this success into the future.

That’s what I was going to say – it’s already happening. The main use of Bitcoin today is as an investment, not as a currency for directly purchasing goods or services. In any case, the first part of the title’s statement is becoming less and less true these days. Bitcoin has had a very steep return curve since its inception, which has been levelling off in recent years, as is to be expected. Therefore, perhaps in a future with less volatility and lower returns, people might also tend to spend it more. But given that much of the bitcoin is being bought by centralised entities such as ETFs and companies, I don’t think so. P2P will remain a minority activity.

[Livingleged]

Yesterday i was reading a book The Bitcoin standard by Saifedeans Ammous and an interesting question raised in my mind that What if bitcoin become so successful as a store of value that people stop using it.Suppose if i people believes that bitcoin could be worth much more in the future they would prefer to to hold it rather than using it for everyday purchases.Even if sellers or venders accepts bitcoin they will still choose to pay in their local currency while keeping bitcoins untouchable.So an interesting situation will happen mostly holders will treat it as a long term investment so its everyday use would be extremely slow.

But this is literarily what’s happening to bitcoin, and almost everyone that’s into bitcoin knows that. Already bitcoin is successful, and holders believe it will become even more successful in the future, that’s why most holders have been building their portfolio without thinking about touching it or making it used for everyday payments. Bitcoin is already projected as a long term investment asset too. Which makes the everyday used of bitcoin transaction and  payment really slow. so I would say you shouldn’t be thinking this because it’s just the reality at the moment.

In my opinion i dont think that holding or keeping bitcoin would be bad thing like its a good decision to save for future but their is a difference between an asset that people wants to own and a currency that feel comfortable spending.May be easier access to Bitcoin payment,lower transaction costs and better payment infrastructure may help solve this.

I don’t think any of the mentioned here has much to why people don’t use the bitcoin for everyday payments. The biggest challenge is it volatility, when prices falls and rises within short periods of time, it becomes a problem for vendors receiving bitcoin as form of payment for goods and services. Bitcoin is accessible once you can connect to internet you’re good. Transactions fee are also not that high so it’s not a problem honestly. However, if the infrastructure around it can be improved that won’t be a bad idea but bitcoin transactions are not really bad even now.

So my question is
Is it a sign of success that people keep holding bitcoins as a store of value rather than spending it or a failure at becoming widely use currency?

It’s a success for sure, bitcoin should be as an alternative money and must not be used for spending. People try to take advantage of every opportunity that comes their way and thats no different in the case of bitcoin. Satoshi never plan that bitcoin will become more like an asset, but since it’s proven to poses the ability to store value, holding it then it’s also a success story. Since it’s doesn’t affects its adoption.

[ruykeri]

If someone holds bitcoin they will start selling that bitcoin at some point for their needs. At that time, many people will hold bitcoin. And if public acceptance increases, the use of bitcoin will also increase. And by bitcoin adoption I mean that people of all levels will use bitcoin independently. So just holding it will not lead to bitcoin adoption or bitcoin being used like a normal currency. For bitcoin adoption more important than these things is how many people are naturally interested in bitcoin and using bitcoin in their real life. whether it trading or  investing or general transactions.

So everyone should not have a mindset that they have to use bitcoin to buy pizza every day and eat it regularly and that will be the success of bitcoin. If bitcoin itself were a company, if it had an owner, then it could actually define which is its goal and which is its success. Since it does not exist but so many people in the whole world are interested in bitcoin and talk about the success of bitcoin, then I do not think bitcoin has not been successful as a digital currency.

[TheUltraElite]

People can spend bitcoin in many ways today, one of the easiest methods to pay is through buying gift cards and spending that gift card on the merchant website. You dont need to pay bitcoin directly to the merchant, in case they are not willing to accept bitcoin, that is.

I dont think the problem is about having less places to spend bitcoin - because this is being circumvented easily. The people who are not willing to spend at all in bitcoin would probably be spending for their need in fiat, which is nothing wrong.

But those who are looking at bitcoin as their method of income, they would prefer to know about these methods and use them.

Success of bitcoin is based on how much people are using it.

[hd49728]

Yesterday i was reading a book The Bitcoin standard by Saifedeans Ammous and an interesting question raised in my mind that What if bitcoin become so successful as a store of value that people stop using it.

Did you read that book or read this thread GameKyuubi's "HODL", the effect on Bitcoin, and the broader philosophy and the post of d5000.

So my question is
Is it a sign of success that people keep holding bitcoins as a store of value rather than spending it or a failure at becoming widely use currency?
I want to here different opinions especially from people who actually used bitcoins for payments rather than simply holding it.

The d5000's post is a very excellent reply, and I don't think I need to answer your question by my own. You can read it and absorb the meaningful reply. Generally people are always different with each other while Bitcoin has many use cases so you don't have to worry about any future when all people globally stop using bitcoin.

You seem to love reading book, so there is another book The bullish case for Bitcoin which will give you more insights about Bitcoin and its bullish future.

[yudi09]

Isn't that what is going on, people are hodling Bitcoin rather than spending because to a big part of the world population Bitcoin is already successful and many investors believes Bitcoin will carry this success into the future.
There are people that aren't even ready to sell to pay for their medical bills.
Adoption is a sign of success, high value is a sign of success, staying decentralized is a sign of continuous success. But the outstanding qualities in financial transactions that Bitcoin has over any currency will make people spend it, I think we will get to the stage where Bitcoin quality and utilities will be inevitable.

I do the same with the Bitcoin I own. The clear reason why users like me choose to treat Bitcoin as an investment asset rather than using it as a means of transaction is that, aside from a country’s official fiat currency, no other currency is permitted as a means of payment.
In other countries, this might be possible to some extent, but since most people are aware of the benefits of hedging, it’s very likely they’ll choose to treat Bitcoin as a long-term investment asset rather than spending it.
Transactions using Bitcoin are fairly fast, cost-effective, and straightforward.

[aoluain]

Bitcoin can, is and will be both a store of value and a means of transacting.

I treat it as a journey, there will be times where Bitcoin will be used overwhelmingly as a store
of value, a hedge against inflation and there will be times when it is spent, not necessarily for
a coffee but sold and bought again and this will depend on the market.

Yesterday i was reading a book The Bitcoin standard by Saifedeans Ammous and an interesting question raised in my mind that What if bitcoin become so successful as a store of value that people stop using it.

How would that work though? Bitcoin will always be sold and bought, the same as every other
asset or commodity, it has a value and everyone* at some stage will sell some depending on varying
life factors so I wouldnt be worried about that at all.

[Questat]

That could be possible for now since Bitcoin is not widely promoted for daily transactions, but people would still use it anyway just not in the same manner as stablecoins. So the biggest attribute of Bitcoin will remain its store of value, the digital gold which I believe it will become in the future, a hedge against inflation and we are getting there. So as inflation keeps rising in most parts of the world, Bitcoin could become a safe haven and that will create more demand, causing its price to appreciate over time.

[Lontor]

Here is the correct answer mate.

There are actually so many Bitcoin holders that don't want to spend their Bitcoin than those who wants to sell theirs, the truth is there will always be people who want to sell.

Even if Bitcoin reaches $1 million there will still be some selling and taking profits on exchanges and some will be slowly buying, nothing is going to stop the buying and selling of Bitcoin.

Gold is another good example, as valuable as Gold is many people are selling theirs and some people are buying, it's impossible for every humans on earth to do the same one thing.

[knowngunman]

Maybe we should look back to what the purpose of Bitcoin is in the first place. Satoshi created this coin as alternative to money that no one can control. The purpose was not to compete with our local currencies. Bitcoin is serving the purpose it was designed for and it doesn't matter whether people spend it daily or hold it. So holding is definitely a sign of success and not failure. People decide to hold it because they trust it and that's what matters.

. First of all, bitcoin success is subjective and depends on what each individuals view as success. For some persons, bitcoin is already a huge success, whereas for others bitcoin success is when 1BTC hits a million dollar.

The second set of people are jokers 

If you're measuring bitcoin success by it price alone, you are just after the gain without understanding what you are even holding.

[Die_empty]

Is it a sign of success that people keep holding bitcoins as a store of value rather than spending it or a failure at becoming widely use currency?
I want to here different opinions especially from people who actually used bitcoins for payments rather than simply holding it.

The answer to this question is relative. To some people, Bitcoin success is when it gets to $1m. While others believe it has become successful when it becomes a global legal tender. Some feel that success is achieving both.

Bitcoiners are free to use their coin the way they want. There will never be a time when Bitcoin will be only used as an asset. People will always exchange Bitcoin for payment of goods and services. Bitcoin is a special currency that has features that fiat lacks. So there will always be people who would use Bitcoin because they want privacy.

If I want to make a financial transaction privately, cryptocurrencies are my best bet. And I guess many people use Bitcoin because no one centralized entity controls it. I also want the price of Bitcoin to keep skyrocketing. The success of Bitcoin, to me, increase in value and growth in adoption.

[Sunshine1525]

There's no way people would stop using Bitcoin for transactions, they can use it to store value but would someday use it for another purpose, you don't expect that everyone would hold forever without selling off someday, even if it's some portions. Even if it's saved as an inheritance, the person who inherited it might end up selling off someday for a purpose.

Moreover, regardless of how we encourage people to hold Bitcoin, there are those that would still choose to trade with it and that’s why centralize exchanges exist, for the purpose of trading and P2P transactions.

[Rockstarguy]

Is it a sign of success that people keep holding bitcoins as a store of value rather than spending it or a failure at becoming widely use currency?
I want to here different opinions especially from people who actually used bitcoins for payments rather than simply holding it.

Bitcoin is a currency that you can decide to do whatever you want with; if you choose to invest in it as a store of value, it is a good decision, and people are adopting Bitcoin because of its status as a store of value, which is a success.

If you choose to spend Bitcoin for purchasing, it is also a good decision; it is a universal currency that can be used in every location, and people are adopting it because it is a global currency, which is a benefit. For everyone who is adopting Bitcoin, they all have their reasons for doing so; this is what makes Bitcoin a success because it has so many advantages.

[atookz]

Would you pay your rent with something you know will be worth twice as much next year? No, you would still keep it and would pay with fiat. That's Gresham's law, people spend the money they believe will be less valuable and save the money they believe will be more valuable. It’s not that people don’t hold BTC; it’s that those who trust it hold on to it.

Even with gold, people didn’t pay with gold bars; they paid with paper backed by it. That could just be the case for BTC as well: Layer on top, spend small amounts on Lightning. And many countries have their own tax headache, which is not helping either, right?

I would say it is working, but it hasn't quite done its job yet.

[Chinesebaby]

Is it a sign of success that people keep holding bitcoins as a store of value rather than spending it or a failure at becoming widely use currency?
I want to here different opinions especially from people who actually used bitcoins for payments rather than simply holding it.

I doubt that such time will ever come, because even if Bitcoin happens to crosses $1million per Bitcoin, people will still keep buying and likewise selling their bitcoin when they are in need for cash, or unless people who has multiple streams of income and have decided to hold theirs for longer period like 5 to 10yrs. Because the likelihood of all investor having a stable income to the point of ignoring their bitcoin for along term is not possible. Because miners will need to confirm Bitcoin transactions, and without people buying and selling their bitcoin, their will be no bitcoin to mined and confirm. 

[Emjay24]

Yesterday i was reading a book The Bitcoin standard by Saifedeans Ammous and an interesting question raised in my mind that What if bitcoin become so successful as a store of value that people stop using it.

This is not possible, Bitcoin has an active market with people always buying and others selling. Even if that ass time goes on, most people might be inclined to hold because of it's value increase, there would still be people who feel they've held enough and wants to take profits and abandon their position. A simple glimpse at the markets would tell you that Bitcoin wouldn't run short of traders, not anytime soon. The more Bitcoin continues to have more and more use cases, the more people would be inclined to spend it for other utilities. Bitcoin might not be used for peasant day to day activities, but there are various other transactions that Bitcoin in utilized and spent.