COVID-19 triggered a global monetary policy response never before seen.
Trillions of dollars were created through quantitative easing amounting to close to 10% of global GDP that entered circulation.
To be blunt, this was an unprecedented issuance of money, unlike anything we've ever witnessed in history.
Traditional hedges like gold have done well but it's human nature to wonder "what else can be done?"
After all, more gold can always be discovered. According to the best scientists, we'll be mining asteroids for minerals and gold within a decade.
As Central Banks Print Money, What Other Hedges Can Protect Your Wealth?
Money printing is an addiction and it's a hard one to kick. And, in my opinion, it's unlikely central bankers around will be able to kick this habit anytime soon.
There are of course other known hedges on global monetary inflation and other macro investors have discussed these at length.
The NASDAQ 100, Goldman Sachs Commodity Index, and the JPM Emerging Market Currency Index to just name a few.
However, the world is watching an internet-native generation come of age. This generation grew up with high-speed internet connections and with powerful computer processors in the power of their hands.
This generation has normalized the expression of one's identity through an online profile.
So it should be no surprise that this generation is also excited about an internet native currency like Bitcoin.
The Promise of a Decentralized, Politics-Free Currency
Of course, you can't really talk about Bitcoin or crypto without addressing the politics at play. It's an inherently political subject.
Bitcoin was birthed from the ashes of the 2008 financial crisis and was originally created to be a globally decentralized peer-to-peer payment network.
But, in my opinion, it's become something much more profound. It's become a global shared ledger for how we assign value and it's become a symbol of the "rebellion."
As central bankers print more and more money, the case for bitcoin grows stronger.
Bitcoin gave the world an open-source code base that's based on math, not the policies of central bankers or the emotions of a politician.
Bitcoin's Programmatically Scarce Nature Sets It Apart From Fiat Money and Commodities
Bitcoin is programmatically scarce. There will never be more than 21 million bitcoin and at the time of writing, there is 19.2 million bitcoin already in circulation with 6.25 new bitcoin being released every time a new block is added to the chain.
The block reward halves every four years which is commemorated in the world of crypto as "The Halvening."
The next one is set for the Spring of 2024 and the block reward will drop to 3.125 new bitcoin released per block.
This is significant for a multitude.
Fiat money can be printed by central bankers, harming the value of the cash that we hold.
Tesla or any publicly traded company can issue new shares with basic board approval to raise new money or acquire new companies.
This dilutes shareholders. Commodities can either be created or discovered. We can find more gold or more silver. But, we can never find more bitcoin.
There will never be more than 21 million bitcoin.
Trust and Liquidity: The Key Advantages of Bitcoin as a Decentralized Payment Network
Let's talk about trust for a second. Before bitcoin was created we relied on intermediaries to access and send our money.
You needed Western Union, Moneygram, PayPal, Venmo, or your bank to move money.
Bitcoin provides us with a trustless way to send money to anyone, anywhere in the world, at any time. It's a fundamental breakthrough in technology.
We no longer need an intermediary to facilitate a transfer of value.
This can be done with a decentralized network of computers and this network has never gone down. It's always online and it's always working.
Bitcoin consistently does tens of billions of dollars in daily trading volume making it readily available and a highly liquid asset.
We've seen governments and large corporations purchase and sell hundreds of millions of dollars worth in a matter of a few short hours.
Bitcoin's Portability and Accessibility Make It a Highly Convenient Asset
It would be incredibly difficult to take millions of dollars of gold all around the world with you. It's not a very portable asset. You can store it in a vault but even the best vaults have security risks.
Bitcoin can be stored on a thumb drive or even in a cloud wallet with the password saved in your memory.
It can go with you anywhere and everywhere all the time.Access to your capital is incredibly important.
Just ask those that have survived bank runs, government coups, overnight currency devaluations, and military revolutions.
It's important to have access to your capital at any moment of any day, including on nights and weekends.
The Bitcoin network doesn't close on Friday at 4 pm like the stock market or a bank branch. It's always working.
Bitcoin Isn't Perfect, but It's the Global Symbol of a Better Way to Do Money
I'm not going to claim that everything about bitcoin is perfect. At times the bitcoin community has been politicized. We saw this with the block size debates and the early bitcoin forks.
But Bitcoin is the entry point. It's the global brand that symbolizes that there's a better way to do money.
That the internet can collectively organize and come together around an alternative store of value. An alternative way to pay.
Despite its imperfections, I'll go so far as to bet that Bitcoin becomes the most valuable brand in the world in the next 10 years.
Why Bitcoin Could Be the Most Valuable Brand in the World Within a Decade
Those that know me well know I'm passionate about not just bitcoin but digital assets in general. I'm a big believer in decentralized general-purpose application networks like Hedera Hashgraph and Ethereum.
In my opinion, these networks should not be compared to bitcoin because they serve an entirely different purpose.
They exist as decentralized operating systems that are best used to power business applications, store files, execute smart contracts, send micropayments, and much more.
I think it's important for all of us working in crypto to recognize that we wouldn't be where we are today without Bitcoin.
Bitcoin is on an unstoppable trajectory to become one of the most valuable brands in the entire world, and the most beautiful part about it is that no one owns the trademark
- it belongs to each and every one of us.
If you're working in crypto, at a publication like CoinDesk.com, an exchange like Binance.com, or an NFT marketplace like NFT.com, I think it's important for all of us to acknowledge that we would not be here today without Satoshi Nakamoto's whitepaper.
Take Control of Your Future: Why Bitcoin is the Key to Your Financial Freedom
The perfect setup for Bitcoin is here. Government distrust is at an all-time high. People are starting to realize that they're losing their purchasing power.
Our politicians and appointed central bankers continue to abuse their power by printing money endlessly.
Together, we are powerful.
You can choose how you store your assets and you can choose what assets you hold.
Global interest will continue to grow but it won't happen all at once. It's important you educate yourself and come to your own conclusions.
Bitcoin is here to stay and will serve as the global on-ramp to a decentralized ecosystem filled with NFTs, Decentralized Finance Applications, and much much more.
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