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072 | Should I Buy Bitcoin | Myles Wakeham

Myles Wakeham tells us how he discovered Bitcoin, how and why cryptocurrencies have to value, and gives us a nuanced perspective of where cryptocurrency might go in the future.

  • Myles is a software developer.
  • How did Myles come to invest in Bitcoin?
  • Myles spent years figuring ways to pay his Bangladeshi software developer, until mid 2011, when his contractor discovered Bitcoin as a more effective method of payment.
  • How is Bitcoin an alternative to PayPal, and has it helped Myles support the growing digital economy in less developed regions?
  • Bitcoin value fluctuates pretty drastically – how does Myles pay his contractors a consistent amount?
  • What is Coinbase, how secure is it, and how does it work?
  • How is Bitcoin similar to the ways people used to trade virtual goods within video games?
  • Bitcoin was originally developed as a way to operate outside the banking system after the global financial crisis in 2008.
  • Myles purchased Bitcoin early (in 2011) and left it in a “savings account”. What’s happened to the value since then, and how does Myles feel about Bitcoin’s place within global investments and conversation?
  • Does Bitcoin have a place in the future economy?
  • What are the limitations of a Bitcoin economy?
  • What gives cryptocurrency value?
  • How does the growth of Bitcoin parallel the California Gold Rush of 1849?
  • What causes intangible things to have value, and when else have we seen that?
  • What are the tax implications of Bitcoin, and how have things changed since the start of 2018?
  • How should people make sense of the huge number of cryptocurrencies?
  • Myles suggests that only a few current cryptocurrencies have actual value.
  • What is Blockchain, and what it its relation to cryptocurrencies?
  • Is it possible to invest in the Blockchain?
  • Is it possible for cryptocurrencies to maintain their decentralization?
  • Myles suggests that governments that allow, monitor and encourage development of cryptocurrencies is a global benefit, and government’s that oppose cryptocurrencies are shutting themselves off from digital development in the world.
  • Is Bitcoin fading in comparison to other cryptocurrencies?
  • What cryptocurriency(s) does Myles have his eye on for the future?

Links from this episode:

Bitcoin

Coinbase

Mr. Money Mustache: Why Bitcoin is Stupid

The Starfish and the Spider book

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