No Escape from Bitcoin's Gravity with Nik Bhatia

 
 
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“It’s just becoming clear to the smartest investors in the room, that denying Bitcoin is like denying the internet 20 years ago and it’s a mistake and you’re going to get left in the dust.”
— Nik Bhatia

SHOW DESCRIPTION

Location: Remotely
Date: Wednesday 18th November
Company: USC Marshall School of Business
Role: Adjunct Professor of Finance

After dropping to lows of ~$4000 when markets went into freefall following the coronavirus outbreak, Bitcoin has bounced back to a near to all-time high of ~$18,500.

The impact of the pandemic on the economy has been a massive increase in government borrowing and money printing. This response has highlighted the importance of scarce assets which can't be debased. 

Gold has historically been the safe-haven asset that money flows into during times of uncertainty. However, many are now turning to Bitcoin, and it is quickly eating into gold's market share.

In a world of fiat currencies, gold and the impending rise of central bank digital currencies, where does Bitcoin fit?

Nik Bhatia has written Layered Money a book looking into this that will be released early in 2021. We discuss his book, where Bitcoin fits in the monetary system, the history of government control over money and central bank digital currencies.

TIMESTAMPS

00:04:52: Introductions
00:05:23: Nik's book, "Layered Money"
00:09:50: The concept of layered money
00:14:46: The history of money
00:17:35: Why gold was used for coins
00:19:05: The Gold Florin
00:21:52: The Antwerp Bourse
00:25:48: First government involvement in "money"
00:26:47: Founding of the Bank of England
00:28:45: The original "pound sterling"
00:32:34: The conversion to the pound note
00:34:24: Instability of South American currencies
00:35:31: The American "Greenback"
00:38:40: Governmental control over money
00:42:42: Bitcoin's scarcity characteristic
00:45:22: Bitcoin vs gold
00:51:48: Central bank digital currencies
00:56:36: Bitcoin's volatility
01:01:04: Secondary consequences of involvement in Bitcoin
01:04:29: The Lightning Network and HTLCs
01:11:09: CBDCs versus Bitcoin
01:17:13: Bitcoin's time has arrived
01:20:27: Final comments

 

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SHOW NOTES

PodcastPeter McCormack