What if Bitcoin Is Never Going to Be More Than Internet Money?

I’ve been thinking about Bitcoin’s role recently and what if it never becomes more than magic Internet money? What if it only stays a speculative asset?

Joël here! 👋

Lately, I’ve been thinking about Bitcoin’s attraction for the masses.

Mainly because of my job at Relai, where I often speak to people outside the Bitcoin bubble, but also because I’m fascinated by perceptions.

What I often hear if I speak to people outside the bubble is that it’s only magic internet money, and it always seems to go up.

This is a fascinating statement, and I think the question of whether it’s actually going to be more than this is one you can ask yourself from time to time…

Bitcoin’s Weirdness Is Still an Attraction

OK, here’s the thing: Bitcoin is weird.

I’m not talking about the online community, its technical feats, or even the look and feel of Bitcoin.

But I’m speaking about its behaviour.

For most people outside of the bubble, these weird online things pump every so often, mainly after being declared dead a few months prior.

Nevertheless, it does its thing, and if the main talking point on CNBC is Bitcoin again, everyone is stunned.

That weirdness and uniqueness are the main attractions of Bitcoin for many people.

I would also argue that it’s the first point of contact for many in the investment sphere.

Therefore, this connection and its weirdness make Bitcoin appealing.

After all, humans are attached to shiny objects…

Number Go Up Is Being Pushed by Wall Street

There is one point I have to address in my quest to find an answer to this question.

Number Go Up, or how it’s often called NGU, is one of the key driving factors in people buying BTC.

After all, why shouldn’t you hold a few sats if there is the potential upside?

Anyone who wouldn’t do this would not understand the game of capital allocation. You see an opportunity to make money, you execute.

However, a misconception has persisted within the Bitcoin community for the past 18 months.

Everyone is so damn convinced that people allocate towards BTC, because they see the benefits Bitcoin brings.

That theory is cute, but it’s just that, a theory.

Wall Street is the primary reason why BTC has been experiencing such a significant surge in value and why the price is increasing.

For many firm-believers, this is a problem. They see Bitcoin as the ultimate antidote to fiat corruption.

Well, I hate to tell you, buddy, it’s not.

Bitcoin is neutral money that can be transmitted across the globe without asking for permission.

If something is open and permissionless, its “enemies” are also able to use it.

That makes Bitcoin one of the only monetary assets out there that is embraced by both the fully suited, hair-geled banker, and the farmer in South America.

Without Wall Street, and especially the spot Bitcoin ETFs in the U.S., we wouldn’t see the price increase, or the newly gained attraction Bitcoin enjoys currently.

Success Takes Time, Especially With Bitcoin

Ok, with the whole NGU thing out of the way, we can now focus on Bitcoin’s utility and role in the world.

See, for any monetary asset to fully establish itself - whether as a reserve asset, medium of exchange, or ultimately a unit of account - it needs time.

Bitcoin is no different from this!

Yes, it beat Visa and MasterCard in market cap terms, and recently just passed silver, but it will take a long time for it to be a serious contender for currencies such as the British Pound or even the Euro.

This is not me being skeptical, but the hard facts. For BTC to surpass these currencies, we need to reach a market cap of anywhere close to $10 trillion, if not $35 trillion.

That’s still a long way to go from Bitcoin’s $2.2 trillion market cap.

Nevertheless, if the adoption of it continues at the same pace as it has over the last decade, we might reach that goal in five to ten years.

But for this to happen, there needs to be a lot of building and more retail adoption.

The only way to get there is to simplify access to it, whether for buying or selling, and to have use cases where it can be used as simply as Apple or Google Pay.

It shouldn’t require deep technical knowledge, but actual, simple solutions to use it as more than just a speculative asset.

Is Bitcoin Ever Going to Be More Than Magic Internet Money?

Now to the fundamental question: Is Bitcoin ever going to be more than magic internet money?

I firmly believe, yes.

But this comes with a few strings attached (like I mentioned above), and we in the Bitcoin bubble need to be more patient.

Like my grandma always said, sometimes you need the courage to wait it out!

Therefore, for now, Bitcoin is mainly a speculative asset for many folks out there.

That’s OK We all have to start somewhere.

But if you want it to become more than that, it’s up to you to onboard, educate, or explain to people how it works.

Also, don’t be so quick to judge; if people outside the bubble come into it with their own version of Bitcoin.

Ultimately, all roads lead back to Bitcoin. It’s up to you which road you want to send people down.