I just found out that Polish regulators and bankers recently issued a major condemnation of Bitcoin and other digital currencies just as more Polish businesses were starting to accept it. The argument is basically that crypto currencies are very risky and are not fit to be considered national or legal tender. They did, however state that crypto currencies in and of themselves don't actually violate any laws (for the full article, see 'sources' below).
While it doesn't surprise me that some countries are having this type of reaction, I feel that this is a bit short-sighted. For one thing, as we all know, it's impossible to actually stop crypto currencies, short of completely cutting off the entire internet, which does not seem likely to happen.
Also, it's true that there are a lot of risks for those getting involved in cryptos. A lot of the points made in the article about the risks like theft, fraud, etc. are valid. The thing is though, this is such a young industry with so much potential. Yes, there is a lot of volatility and other things/issues that need to be ironed out, but over time there's a good chance that many of those issues will be. It takes time though and if you put it into perspective, our modern day banking system has had hundreds of years to evolve and get to where it is today (and as we all know, it is still not perfect....it's just that it is the accepted standard).
I just think that it's unfortunate to see some countries wanting to simply discourage people from becoming a part of it. This, of course, has its roots in fear. People naturally fear change but it still remains the only constant in life. As people, it's our job to adapt and change as the world changes around us.
Putting road blocks up like this is not going to help anything. It's just going to scare people, make them more likely to miss out on potential opportunities that they could have otherwise participated in, and ultimately delays or discourages helping to come up with solutions that could mitigate some of the risks and other issues that cryptos are currently facing. It would have been nice to see more of a focus on identifying issues and offering potential solutions instead of telling people to simply stay away from it.
Okay, that was my vent for the day and now I feel better :)
Thank you for those of you who took the time to read it and I'd be happy to hear any comments you may have and would enjoy discussing this further.
Thanks,
Jen
Sources: