<aside> 💡 In the first Block of the Bitcoin Network's Blockchain is the front page headline from The Times on January 3, 2009: “Chancellor on the brink of second bailout for banks” .
While Bitcoin was not a direct response to the Global Financial Crisis, it's ethos of financial sovereignty is an antithesis to what the GFC exposed - deep breaches of trust by financial institutions that resulted in money being devalued.
This is important to note, as the fundamental value-proposition for Bitcoin is it’s ability to disrupt and displace monetary system globally.
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Included in the first block of Bitcoin, the Genesis Block, is the headline from this newspaper.
Money flowing into Bitcoin can be divided into two basic types:
This section looks at what fundamental properties make Bitcoin valuable.
There is an enormous amount of money and energy that is used each day by financial institutions, both in infrastructure and labour.
However, the Bitcoin Network does what banks spend billions on each year attempting to achieve - efficient payment finality.
Divisible & Portable
Assets like gold are difficult to divide into smaller units, and can be a logistical nightmare to transport.
However, digital-native Bitcoin is easily divisible and portable, and easily transportable.
Programmability
Escrow services, payment schedules, and subscriptions, can be programmed using Bitcoin; these options will continue to grow as Bitcoin continues being developed.
Secure
The Bitcoin Network eliminates the risk and costs associated with charge-backs and fraudulent transactions.
This reduces operating costs to merchants, and ultimately reduces costs to consumers.
Verifiable
Any transaction can be verified, because the transaction is freely available on a world-wide decentralised ledger.
Borderless, Unseizable & Uncensorable
This borderless framework means that the unbanked and underbanked, who make up the majority of adults globally, can participate in worldwide trade.
Decentralised
While nobody owns the Bitcoin network, it is controlled by all Bitcoin users. A consensus must be reached before changes to the network can be made, thereby preventing bad actors maliciously affecting the network.
Inexpensive
The overall implicit outcomes of blockchain technology is system integrity and efficiency, and thus results in cost efficiencies for users.
The type of people buying has been shifting from early adopters and speculators, to an increasing number of consumers, family trusts, corporations, and hedge funds.
Bitcoin is scarce; it has a known supply, and has an decreasing inflation rate.
There is a Current Supply of about 19 Million Bitcoin, but as there is an Inaccessible Supply of about 3,700,000 Bitcoin, there is a Circulating Supply of only 15 Million bitcoin.
The current average annualised return on an investment with Bitcoin is 230% - more than 10 times higher than of the US Nasdaq 100, coming in at 20%; it has outperformed the S&P500 by 1,600%.
When viewing Bitcoin strictly as a financial asset, investors seek assets that can provide diversification in an multi-asset portfolio -Bitcoin has a low correlation to indexes, currencies, or other commodities, like gold.
Bitcoin has a known scarcity.
This programmed and immutable scarcity is why Bitcoin is valued as a hedge against inflation, and hyperinflation.
As a comparison, we don't know how much gold there is available to be mined, and in terms of money, central banks can keep printing ad infinitum.
Bitcoin fixes this.
It is estimated that bitcoin ownership is at about 1.3% of the world's population - about 81 million people - some recent (2021) estimates place this number at around 175 million people worldwide.
Yes!
Bitcoin's fundamental strengths outlined above underscores how it continues to be undervalued asset.