The emergence of Crypto in 2009 was a new frontier and a potential replacement of FIAT currencies since the world was rapidly going digital. Governments were rattled because they would lose control of financial transactions and in turn lose revenue from taxes and other regulatory fees.
To the citizen, it looked like a breather from oppressive governments because the citizens would invest in digital stock markets without needing to meet a lot of checks and huge taxes charged by government regulating authorities.
The boom in price of Bitcoin since 2013 has brought in a huge number of Bitcoin and altcoin enthusiasts from FOMO – Fear of Missing Out on this huge opportunity.
A lot of altcoins have emerged since then to a tune of 1,700 altcoins and tokens listed on the largest crypto market platform www.coinmarketcap.com and many more tokens are being developed.Consequesntly, many crypto currency exchanges have been developed with www.binance.com leading the pack in terms of popularity.
Has Decentralization helped or do governments have a point to centralize?
Every new opportunity comes with its own merits and demerits. Some of the main merits with digital currencies are;
i) They are decentralized, there is no regulating authorities hence it’s a free market with no government barriers and huge levies in form of regulatory fees and taxes.
ii) Easily accessible. Its available to everyone across the globe. What a user needs are a mobile phone or computer and internet.
iii) Less transactions fees as compared to banks and other third-party transaction institutions.
iv) Fast transactions. Digital currency payments take from a few seconds to minutes. Imagine doing payment using a cheque that takes two days to clear. Crypto is a huge savior in speed matters.
v) Very secure. It’s impossible to hack the blockchain so once transactions are confirmed, they are permanent. No party can infiltrate and alter the details. In addition, transactions cannot be reversed which cuts of fraud.
vi) Private- No need to provide personal information during transactions.
The demerits are;
i) Not widely acceptable – Crypto has not yet been accepted by banks and other financial institutions therefore not many transactions can be done using it.
ii) Very volatile- Crypto prices keeps shifting up and down every second. This is a huge risk to investors especially when prices are manipulated by a few stakeholders for their benefit.
iii) Incase of mistakes in amount transacted, it is impossible to reverse the transactions.
iv) Lack of adequate knowledge to the biggest number of people – A lot of people do not know much about cryptos because much is not yet available
Despite the above crypto benefits, the few demerits will bring crypto to extinction if it is not regulated.
A lot of first crypto owners and stake holders have dominated the crypto space and manipulate prices and dynamics to benefit themselves. Some exchanges are accused of going underground after getting hold of user’s crypto assets. Many more exchanges manipulate trade volumes and prices for their benefit and inflicting huge loses to their users.
A lot of tokens coming up are Ponzi schemes focused on fleecing unsuspecting investors.
Crypto is benefiting a few people and hurting the masses.
Do you know why Bitcoin price has remained low with low trade volumes since January 2018? Let me answer you. I have talked to a lot of former Crypto traders who have made huge loses and have vowed never to return to Crypto! A lot of people are staying away from Crypto due the manipulation that is taking place. It is impossible to make tangible transactions with it because by the time you plan to do a Crypto transaction, the price has dropped and not equivalent to the fiat you were holding formerly.
Do you know why fiat currencies are widely acceptable despite the many demerits as compared to crypto? Its accepted simply because it is regulated and any stakeholder is assured of fair play that is not common with crypto.
Many users have known the truth about Crypto and word is going around and keeping the masses away from it. Bitcoin prices will not hike because of increased volume but because a few people will manipulate it for their own gain.
If the world will benefit from the merits of digital currencies, then CENTRALIZATION is a pre-requirement! There has to be a single global body independent from central banks that will see the centralization put take a different path from central banks and other financial institutions that kill the freedom in currencies. The body uphold fair play but hold the crucial benefits of Crypto. It should be the mediation between central banks, financial institutions and Crypto enthusiasts for mutual benefit.
Someone will argue that Jeff Bezos’s Amazon and the internet in 1994 received the same criticism. Yes, you are right! But remember Amazon and the internet are a win-win scenario among the stakeholders. It has made equal benefit for the users and the owners, something that Crypto has not achieved!
RIPPLE must have seen this future and started right with centralization. Don’t be shocked why it has been accepted by banks and is currently being used and is being adapted for formalized global transactions!
If Crypto is not centralized, according to a yearlong decline trend it will not be accepted, a lot of potential users will stay away. Its value will drop to 2009 figures and it will not have value therefore will go extinct by 2025!
