NFTs and decentralization

Thought of the week by Anita Posch

Kings of Leon released their new album as an NFT - What is an NFT?

Find my short explainer about NFTs on Austrian radio FM4. At the moment I see a hype in the crypto space around NFTs, similar to the ICO hype of 2017. Although many people dismiss NFTs I think they do have potential in the digital space. You might not be able to reach true scarcity, because you can’t prevent copies of the art piece, but you can prove that you are the owner of that one specific piece.

Anita Posch about NFTs on FM4 radio

This is why we need more decentralization

It is easy for oppressive governments to crack down on its people, they just have to restrict access to social media sites and servers. Happening in Senegal now.

Confirmed: Social media and messaging apps restricted in #Senegal amid political unrest following arrest of opposition leader; real-time metrics show Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp and Telegram CDN servers disrupted, limiting photo and video sharing

https://t.co/klvokfpLyu pic.twitter.com/L6q3ygu9jP

— NetBlocks (@netblocks) March 5, 2021

It was also easy for big tech companies to build monopolies in recent times. But it seems things are shifting. App developers like Spotify, Hey or Epic games are fighting the 30% fees they have to pay to Apple’s store to be listed. One bill, which would let developers sidestep the two companies’ 30 percent fees on digital purchases, cleared the Arizona House by a 31-29 vote Wednesday. Last month, Apple and Google beat back a North Dakota Senate bill that would have required Apple to let iPhone and iPad users download alternative app stores and let developers change their payment options. Source

Quote of the Week

The root problem with conventional currency is all the trust that’s required to make it work. The central bank must be trusted not to debase the currency, but the history of fiat currencies is full of breaches of that trust. - Satoshi Nakamoto

Top Stories

The Purchasing Power of Fiat Currencies Is Melting Away

One example ot that breaches of trust, that Satoshi Nakamoto was speaking of, is the devaluation of fiat currencies. In last weeks newsletter I was telling you about the rampant inflation in Germany and Austria 100 years ago. Then I showed the consumer price inflation of the last decade in Austria, which is 19%. This week I found an interesting chart showing the constant loss in purchasing power of the US Dollar. US Dollar loss in purchasing power

Bitcoin’s volatility is sinking

One of the major arguments against bitcoin as a store of value and medium of exchange is its high volatility. That’s ignoring the fact that bitcoin’s volatility over the years has been constantly sinking as you can see in the chart below. Adding to that: if you see bitcoin as a long term investment, at least for 5 years, then the short-term volatility doesn’t hurt you. If you want to use it for payments, you can do that too. Just buy or earn the spent btc amount back. No change through volatility loss or gain involved.

Bitcoin is highly liquid compared to US money stock

Due to the lock downs and the ongoing crisis people are holding on to their fiat currencies. Money is sitting in bank accounts losing value every single day. Meanwhile the velocity of bitcoin is higher than the velocity of US money for spending.

Lightning Network is growing and exchanges are adopting

The Lightning Network is a second layer protocol on top of the Bitcoin network that allows faster payments and micropayments. You might want to listen to my interview with Ryan Gentry and Desiree Dickerson we’re explaining, what the LN is and their outlook for its development in 2021. OKCoin, a bitcoin exchange in Singapur, has integrated the Lightning Network into their services. This means the fees for trades will go down significantly.

Podcast of the week audio only

With Max Keiser explaining how to assess the value of bitcoin and his 220k USD price prediction: Max Keiser & Stacy Herbert: The 220k Bitcoin Orange Pill

Video

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If you want to check, here is today’s Bitcoin price.

No financial advice. DYOR.