“To exist is to change, to change is to mature, to mature is to go on creating oneself endlessly.” — Henri Bergson
The cryptocurrencies space is changing.
That statement can get the biggest, “Duh!” reaction ever. Yes, that space is changing — so fast and in so many ways there is no one on planet Earth who has it under control.
But, this is just fine, as it is the resplendent free market at work constantly changing and adjusting with various nuances and occurrences.
The leader in this whirlwind of 24/7 crypto activity is Bitcoin. It was developed by “Satoshi Nakamoto,” who could be male or female, one or multiple people. We don’t know. What we do know is that Bitcoin, and more specifically the underlying technology that powers it called blockchain, are changing our world. Wherever you are, “Satoshi Nakamoto,” thank you.
The future of Bitcoin
Many are voicing concerns over Bitcoin and wondering about its future. As of this writing, it is still the largest cryptocurrency, but it is getting fierce competition from coins like Ethereum, Ripple and even Bitcoin Cash, a break-away coin (called a “hard fork”) that was introduced in August 2017.
Many are looking for alternates, or in the language of cryptocurrencies, alt-coins. Stan Larimer, CEO of Cryptonomex and noted cryptocurrency expert, said Bitcoin has become the victim of its own success.
Larimer talked about this and other issues in a recent interview I did with him on “The State of Cryptocurrencies.” You can see and hear that full interview here.
Like a major interstate highway going through a city in rush hour, speeds get slow. What used to take only a few seconds has grown to take, in some cases, days and even weeks.
I lamented this for you here in The Business Journals earlier this month, when I talked about my travails with Coinbase, a major exchange in the United States. (To close the loop on the story shared in that article: I have now processed the noted transaction. It took from December 18 at 4:17 a.m. — yes, I was up early that day! — till late afternoon on December 31 before it processed. Imagine trying to purchase something with a credit card that took that long.)
