Government

Major South Korean Bank Prepares to Launch Crypto Services as Government Green-Lights Regulation

28/03/2020 by Idelto Editor

Following the approval of a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies by the South Korean government, one of the largest banks in the country is preparing to launch a range of crypto services. KB Kookmin Bank has applied for trademark registration, reportedly listing over 20 crypto services on its application.

Also read: 2x Bitcoin — Wanna Double Your BTC to the Moon? Forget About It

KB Kookmin Bank Registers Trademark for a Wide Range of Crypto Services

One of the largest banks in South Korea, KB Kookmin Bank has filed a registration application to trademark “KBDAC.” Local news outlet Digital Today reported on Friday that the bank listed over 20 crypto services on its application, adding that trademark registration can take between six months and two years in South Korea.

The bank’s filing with the Korean Intellectual Property Office dated Jan. 31 details a number of crypto services, including trading, financial reporting, asset management, consulting, advisory, over-the-counter brokerage, and custody.

A KB Kookmin Bank official explained that KBDAC is related to the bank’s collaboration with blockchain company Atomrigs Lab Inc., announced in June last year, the publication conveyed. However, the official did not reveal the service launch date. Meanwhile, the bank has also been actively exploring various use cases of blockchain technology.

South Korea Approves Crypto Regulation

KB Kookmin Bank’s move coincides with the passing of a revision to the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information. This bill, introduced in November last year, passed the National Assembly on March 5 and the South Korean government approved its revision on March 17.

Under the new law, South Korean cryptocurrency exchanges must use the real-name system by partnering with a financial institution that can provide this service. Banks will be obligated to conduct customer due diligence on the crypto businesses they deal with, ensuring proper reporting to the Korea Financial Intelligence Unit (KOFIU).

“The revision bill will take effect one year after promulgation, and the current crypto-asset business operators will be given a six-month transition period to report to the KOFIU,” South Korea’s top financial regulator, the Financial Services Agency, explained. “This revision act will place Korea’s legal framework on crypto assets more in line with international standards set forth by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and strengthen its AML/CFT regime.”

Do you think many South Korean banks will start offering crypto services? Let us know in the comments section below.

The post Major South Korean Bank Prepares to Launch Crypto Services as Government Green-Lights Regulation appeared first on Bitcoin News.

Making Bitcoin Go Viral: Could Endless Printing Trigger a Hyperbitcoinization Event?

26/03/2020 by Idelto Editor

Hyperbitcoinization has been defined as “a state where bitcoin becomes the world’s dominant form of money.” But what actually needs to happen for bitcoin to ‘go viral’? As it turns out, a hyperbitcoinization event may be more likely than many suspect, especially in the current economic climate. However, there’s one big caveat: it requires human action.

Also read: Disney World Economics: How Coronavirus Could Be Used to Justify a Global Financial Reset

Contagious Currency

The current covid-19 panic and pandemonium gripping the world has brought economic issues to the forefront of conversation, as economies across the globe are stunted by government orders to shutdown. Whether this is the best way to contain a contagion is hotly debated, but the paranoia about getting sick has stretched so far as to even touch the safety of paper cash.

Some nations, China and the U.S. among them, have been quarantining and disinfecting physical cash, for fear that it could spread the covid-19 virus. This potential transmission vector is viewed as an important threat, and many businesses across the globe are encouraging customers to use contactless payment systems in lieu of the dirty paper stuff.

There’s even been a buzz in the bitcoin space about this being an argument for crypto adoption. But for bitcoin to catch fire and really spread around the world in viral fashion, a number of factors must be present.

Conditions Necessary for Hyperbitcoinization

In order for “Bitcoin-induced currency demonetization” to take place, three main factors must be present so that a competing money “will rapidly lose value as bitcoin supplants it.”

Loss of Faith in Established Systems: Individuals across the globe are losing jobs and losing trust in their governments, their monetary systems, and in many cases, the broader global economic paradigm itself. Before covid-19 showed up, the world was already in the throes of widespread protest and unrest surrounding corrupt governance and economically unviable situations at a systemic level.

Now states have leveraged coronavirus to justify shutting down innumerable businesses and halting critical industry, many more are asking questions, and some are losing faith in the Modern Monetary Theory magic, which says that you can always “just print more money” when times are hard. The thing is, you can’t “just print more” goods and services. As currencies across the globe lose value, hyperinflation is also not an entirely impossible outcome, meaning dollars could potentially turn into valueless scraps of paper.

Viable Alternatives to Fiat: Bitcoin is permissionless, fast, borderless, low-fee, and decentralized. While the issue of which version of bitcoin would best serve as a global money is debated, the critical fact is that an alternative to government fiat does exist, has active use cases, and is at this point time-tested. It is also hard-capped in supply and looks promising as an inflation-resistant asset.

Further, with governments now in development and research for CDBCs (central bank digital currencies) even so-called “normies” are being primed for understanding how crypto and digital assets work. The corona zeitgeist is one that includes mainstream media buzz about a “digital dollar” and “digital yuan.” This presents a unique window of opportunity for a shift away from fiat currencies.

Open Markets: Of all the prerequisites for hyperbitcoinization, this is arguably the trickiest, and will be dealt with more in-depth at the close of this article. Suffice to say that without the ability for individuals to transact freely and voluntarily no currency — not even national currencies like the yen, dollar, or peso — can be successful.

‘Ideal Money’

Late Nobel Prize Laureate John Nash, an American mathematician known for — among numerous other accolades — being the namesake for game theory’s Nash equilibrium, developed a notion he referred to as Ideal Money.

Ideal Money would be, simply put, a money whose value is not foundationally subject to political special interests and conflicts of interest like the USD, and which is not inherently subject to inflation. Loosely comparing modern economic planners with Bolshevik communists, Nash once wrote:

So there may be an analogy to this as regards those called ‘the Keynesians’ in that while they have claimed to be operating for high and noble objectives of general welfare what is clearly true is that they have made it easier for governments to ‘print money’.

Nash’s words sound hauntingly on target today, as we witness nations like the U.S. create unprecedented amounts of fiat out of thin air, ignoring that eventually, someone must pay the piper.

Though Nash had his own ideas about what might best constitute this so-called ideal, the renowned mathematician did not rule out bitcoin.

In fact, he wrote in his paper Ideal Money: “My personal view is that a practical global money might most favorably evolve through the development first of a few regional currencies of truly good quality. And then the ‘integration’ or ‘coordination’ of those into a global currency would become just a technical problem.” Nash went on:

But the famous classical ‘Gresham’s Law’ also reveals the intrinsic difficulty. Thus ‘good money’ will not naturally supplant and replace ‘bad money’ by a simple Darwinian superiority of competitive species. Rather than that, it must be that the good things are established by the voluntary choice of human agencies.

Human Action: The Final Ingredient

It is interesting that Nash describes “a few regional currencies of truly good quality” coming together someday via technical integration. Could this be an unintended, prescient nod to bitcoin, blockchain, and the various integrations and ideas the crypto space has seen over the years like atomic swaps and network interoperability?

Only time will tell. What is certain, and what Nash notes explicitly in the passage, is that no matter how seemingly fit the conditions, no exodus from the broken world of fiat can happen without voluntary human action.

This is a tricky thing. Those that use bitcoin know its value and utility, but they are limited in some ways as to how they can leverage digital cash due to enforced regulations. Those that don’t know about crypto in a meaningful way remain the unable-to-act majority, presenting a two-faced challenge. Standing in the way of hyperbitcoinization, then, is the obstacle of “going viral” and that of forced censorship. The first obstacle shouldn’t be hard to overcome, on surface view. The second is more daunting.

According to marketing group Outgrow, novelty and “information gaps” play a major role in determining what type of content goes viral online. The group notes:

Researchers have found that a part of our brain actually feels rewarded by novel ideas rather than the familiar. When consumers feel they’ve been led to a new notion or concept, their brains flood their bodies with dopamine.

A lack of desperately sought info — or “information gap” — can also lead to virality, according to the group, when that info is found.

So in this context of the current mass unemployment, crashing stock markets, and an increasingly questionable world reserve currency, emotions, which are another major indicator for virality, are running extremely high. And lo and behold, there is a novel proposed solution which fills the info gap of the “what is good money” question.

Still, there’s something of a catch 22. If the masses aren’t using it, it’s not going to be very useful in a situation like this. If they don’t start, a dire situation like this is bound to perdure, and repeat. Whether in compliance with laws and regulations or otherwise, individual actors have proven bitcoin’s strength by trading regardless, and such use is required to show the world bitcoin’s utility.

From feeding the hungry in Venezuela and South Sudan during a global crisis with borderless BCH, to making money for survival by selling goods peer-to-peer with no middleman or political permission, bitcoin is virtually unconfiscatable. It allows a shift from the broken fiat paradigm if individuals so choose. This core utility is what could ultimately trigger hyperbitcoinization, and what a “digital dollar” can’t hold a candle to. Then there might be a real shot at a peaceful, sound, and sensible global economy.

Do you think hyperbitcoinization is possible? Let us know in the comments section below.

The post Making Bitcoin Go Viral: Could Endless Printing Trigger a Hyperbitcoinization Event? appeared first on Bitcoin News.

Cash Crisis: National Currencies Plunge in the Wake of Coronavirus

24/03/2020 by Idelto Editor

Cash Crisis: National Currencies Plunge up to 25% in the Wake of Coronavirus

Fiat currencies across the globe have experienced sharp declines in the wake of the coronavirus panic, with the Norwegian Krone falling over 30% lately last week. The Mexican peso and Australian dollar trailed close behind over the same period, with multiple fiat currencies also taking a nosedive. Though USD remains strong, some speculate this is due to flight from other markets, and that the bastion of fiat strength might not be able to withstand endless printing and reckless credit creation of QE much longer.

Also read: The Multi Trillion-Dollar Stimulus Package: These Are the US Corporations Begging for Bailouts

‘Unlimited Money’

Announcing an open-ended QE program Monday for unprecedented asset purchasing, the U.S. Federal Reserve has pledged to purchase assets “in the amounts needed,” signaling the beginning of a virtually unlimited easing effort which will include moving into corporate bonds for the first time.

As lockdown orders, enforced business closures and travel bans continue to wreck economies, world currencies are reeling from the massive shock spiked by coronavirus panic and containment measures. The Fed and other central banks of the world may have their eyes on unlimited support, but many fiat currencies are telling a different story.

Norwegian Krone and Others Knocked Down by Virus-Plagued Markets

The Norwegian krone has now hit a record low against the U.S. dollar, falling 25% from the end of December, and over 20% in just under two weeks from March 9 to 20. Other currencies have taken the same trajectory in that 11-day time frame, with the Mexican peso and Australian dollar falling 17% and 13% respectively.

In the last two weeks, some major currencies tanked by as much as 20% against the dollar. And currencies have historically had fairly low volatility. British Pound hit the lowest level since 1985. The imported products are going to suddenly get a lot more expensive pic.twitter.com/th91nL0YKm

— Larry Cermak (@lawmaster) March 23, 2020

NZD, GBP, SEK, and other fiat currencies aren’t doing a whole lot better. The British pound has tumbled downward past levels not seen since 1985, falling against the euro.

Quoted in a March 19 report by Bloomberg, European head of currency strategy at Toronto-Dominion Bank, Ned Rumpeltin, opined:

At a minimum, we think there is a strong impulse to liquidate what you can — before you can’t — as London’s trading floors are probably about to be slammed shut before too long.

Fears of circuit breakers and trading suspensions aren’t unwarranted. March has seen stock exchanges across the globe tighten restrictions and adjust trading rules, with a temporary suspension of all trading in the Philippines on March 17, and the NYSE opening yesterday for the first time in 228 years to an empty floor.

But What About the US Dollar?

Amidst all the chaos the U.S. dollar is surging against other world currencies. While the dollar remains strong for now, some are not certain the situation can continue, especially with the unadulterated market intervention happening currently, and talk of humongous stimulus packages. U.S. Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer described his plan for “unemployment on steroids” Sunday:

You lose your job because of this crisis or any other reason, the federal government will pay you your full salary for 4 to 6 months.

[email protected] on Dems’ Coronavirus “stimulus”: “You lose your job because of this crisis OR ANY OTHER REASON, the federal government will pay you your full salary for 4 to 6 months.” pic.twitter.com/pcdr4I6CQY

— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) March 21, 2020

While many imagine hyperinflation to be a freak economic phenomenon reserved only for non-U.S. countries, An Art Cashin piece from October 15, 2011 notes that “Hyperinflation requires a central bank to willingly commit economic suicide.”

Though Cashin thought this was unlikely for the U.S. almost a decade ago, his descriptions of the hyperinflation in Germany’s Weimar Republic now sound eerily familiar to some:

Things did not go badly instantly. Yes, the deficit soared but much of it was borne by foreign and domestic bond buyers … that means foreign bond buyers said – ‘Hey this is a great nation and this is probably just a speed bump in the economy.’

“When things began to disintegrate, no one dared to take away the punchbowl,” Cashin continues. “They feared shutting off the monetary heroin would lead to riots, civil war, and, worst of all communism. So, realizing that what they were doing was destructive, they kept doing it out of fear that stopping would be even more destructive.”

Cash Crisis: National Currencies Plunge in the Wake of Coronavirus — At the height of the German hyperinflation in November 1923, 1 USD was worth roughly 4,200,000,000,000 German marks.

Future of Fiat Uncertain, as Governments Stave Off Painful Economic Realities

While it’s yet uncertain if such a fate awaits the USD, it is interesting to note the similarities. The Weimar Republic was a product of the first World War’s ravaging, prolonged effects on Germany.

With a war-torn economy that was unable to produce, the answer was to just print more money. Looking at U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent proclamation that he is a “wartime president” and that fighting the Covid-19 virus is now “a war — a different kind of war than we’ve ever had,” it raises suspicion about the forced shutdown of economies currently witnessed. Unemployment rates are expected to skyrocket in coming months. There’s no worries according to the U.S. leader, however, who maintains:

First of all, you never have to default because you print the money, I hate to tell you, OK?

As astute economists are quick to point out, you can print money infinitely, but you cannot print the scarce assets, resources, labor and expertise the money is meant to represent. This is one reason some now are moving value to perceived safer, hard-capped supply assets such as bitcoins or physical gold.

What do you think about the decline of national currencies being witnessed now? Let us know in the comments section below.

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Minting Basic Income – US Lawmaker Asks Treasury to Issue Two $1 Trillion Coins With No Debt

22/03/2020 by Idelto Editor

The U.S. is now facing the onslaught from the coronavirus outbreak. During the last two weeks, bureaucrats have shut down multiple industries while the Federal Reserve has injected trillions into the hands of private banks. Bipartisan members of Congress have been penning a 2020 stimulus plan, as the government may send $1-2K to every American on a monthly basis until the covid-19 hardship ends. On Saturday, Michigan Democrat Rashida Tlaib, with the help of Modern Money Network Rohan Grey, proposed a plan that will allow the U.S. Treasury to mint new coins that don’t cause any debt to taxpayers.

Also read: Can’t Lock Down Bitcoin: Trump Ponders Halting Stock Trading, Grounding US Passenger Flights

Michigan Democrat Unveils MMT-Backed Universal Basic Income Concept for Americans Dealing With Covid-19

The entire world faces an economic recession due to the covid-19 virus that has been infecting nearly every country. In response to the pandemic, politicians and central bankers have been using every tool they have to keep the economy afloat during the outbreak. In the U.S., the Federal Reserve slashed rates to 0%, allowed banks to operate without reserve requirements, and funneled trillions of greenbacks into a mostly electronic dollar system.

Meanwhile, U.S. politicians on the federal level are promising American citizens at least 1-2K per month to help deal with the economy after shutting down a variety of industries nationwide. Now the U.S. representative for Michigan’s 13th congressional district, Rashida Tlaib, wants the U.S. Treasury to mint two trillion-dollar platinum coins. Moreover, Tlaib’s new “Automatic Boost Act” claims it will not add any debt to anyone thanks to the theory behind Modern Monetary Theory (MMT).

Michigan representative Rashida Tlaib has proposed her plan to President Donald Trump. Modern Monetary Theory has been growing popular among Democrats and advocates of socialism.

Tlaib’s proposed plan aims to create a universal basic income system that initiates the first payout of $2,000 to every American citizen. Following the first $2K payment, U.S. residents will get an additional monthly payment of $1K up until one whole year after the covid-19 outbreak. The plan follows the MMT doctrine and was co-written by the president of the Modern Money Network Rohan Grey.

Rohan Grey, the president of the Modern Money Network, helped Tlaib co-write the Boost Act. Grey has called the MMT concept “sound-finance socialism.”

Essentially, the Boost Act would allow the Treasury to create a card administered by the U.S. Treasury’s Bureau of the Fiscal Service. Each card would be recharged with currency on a monthly basis. Every person includes dependents, the Boost Act underlines, “so a couple with two children would receive 4x $2,000 = $8,000 in total.” Undocumented people who exceed three months of residency in the U.S. are also eligible. The plan also extends to “individuals who do not have a bank account, social security number, or permanent address.”

“To ensure that this program is as universal and comprehensive as possible, the U.S. Treasury will develop its list of eligible individuals in coordination with the Internal Revenue Service, the Social Security Administration, the Federal Election Commission, and every other relevant federal, state, and local government agency, including state-level Departments of Motor Vehicles (DMVs),” the Boost act notes. Tlaib’s proposal adds:

These pre-paid digital cash cards could be used to withdraw physical currency at regular ATMs or FDIC-insured banks or credit unions or make payments at Point-of-Sale terminals, as well as online. In addition, these cards could be topped-up with additional funds as needed, during and after the crisis.

The Magic of MMT – Inflation Is Offset by Pillaging the Private Sector

After explaining the distribution methods, the Boost Act details how the whole plan will be funded. Basically, the plan has a catch like no other because Tlaib and Grey believe after issuing the new coins no additional U.S. debt would be issued. In contrast to stacking debt, Congress will simply use the constitutional power of the purse in unison with the Treasury and mint the new money. Under the Boost Act, Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin would tell the U.S. Mint to create “two $1 trillion platinum coins.”

Congress using its vested powers would then order the Fed to buy the new coins at face value and the private bank would retain ownership over the two $1 trillion coins permanently. Then Mnuchin can simply “sweep” the fresh reserves and distribute it into the Treasury General Account. From here the Treasury, with help from other federal entities, will disperse the money to every person in America in the form of pre-loaded cards.

“This approach would preserve the historical separation between fiscal and monetary policy and avoid financial entanglement between the Treasury and the Federal Reserve which would eventually undermine the independence of the Fed,” the Boost Act details.

The Boost Act is only two pages long, but attempts to explain how it will get away with creating money from thin air by leveraging MMT. Long ago, U.S. dollars stemmed from the backing of a commodity (gold) and the government standardized a system of bills. Since the greenback has been off the gold standard, most of society’s money isn’t tangible anymore and the Fed can create as many dollars as they want behind closed curtains. The Fed has already been doing this for years but with MMT, the plan claims to remove inflation. MMT is popular these days among politicians like Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The reason for this is because MMT aims to increase taxes considerably and take most of it from the private sector. Congress, the Fed, and the Treasury will allow massive amounts of stimulus and inflation will be balanced by stifling the private sector’s ability to purchase resources.

MMT Supporters Think the Economic Theory Can Attract Crypto Proponents

Despite MMT and Tlaib’s Boost plan showing its true colors and instead of removing money from the state it connects the two together permanently. In fact, the Boost act mentions that after the covid-19 issues are dealt with, the federal government can decide on whether or not they want to keep the new money in the system. MMT advocates have even tried to persuade cryptocurrency and blockchain proponents that the two concepts are similar.

Modern monetary theory (MMT) is not at all like bitcoin, as MMT gives centralized, unlimited monetary power to the federal government. Bitcoin is fundamentally decentralized by nature, censorship-resistant, permissionless, and provides economic freedom across any border. MMT, like all concepts that derive from re-hashed socialism, gives wealth to a certain group (specifically the government) because MMT supporters believe the government knows best. Bitcoin is light years ahead of recycled money concepts designed by unrelatable politicians and MMT intellectuals.

Unfortunately, many MMT supporters do not understand the importance of a permissionless, peer-to-peer payment system that is not controlled by a government, corporation, group or any single individual. Instead, representative Tlaib and Modern Money Network’s Grey want to give the federal government unlimited power. Ironically, MMT shills push this propaganda during a crisis and right after parasitic politicians and the Fed relentlessly wreaked havoc on the financial lives of American citizens.

What do you think about the proposal to have the Treasury mint two $1 trillion platinum coins? Let us know in the comments below.

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US Real Estate in Jeopardy – Analysts Predict Housing Market Crash to 29-Year Lows

21/03/2020 by Idelto Editor

As the coronavirus outbreak ravages the global economy, a number of industries are taking a bit longer to feel the brunt of the financial hardship. As individuals watch the value of their investments fall, economists believe the U.S. housing market will crash to 29-year lows amidst a looming global recession. Lendingtree’s chief economist Tendayi Kapfidze is one of those analysts who believe the U.S. might see a complete “shutdown in the housing market.” Kapfidze warns that Covid-19 fears will leave a “drastic impact” throughout the entire real estate industry.

Also read: US Cash Crisis: Withdrawal Limits Spark Bank Run Fear

While the Fed Slashes Interest Rates and Pumps Trillions Into Banks, US Real Estate Interest Rate and Prices Remain High

Stocks, bonds, equities, commodities, and digital currencies all saw an intense sell-off during the last week and a half. Industries like airlines, tourism, hotel chains, agriculture, and construction have seen revenues slide to levels not seen in well over a decade. One industry that hasn’t been affected much yet is home prices, at least by assessment values in the real estate market where prices remain at 2019’s high levels. Searching MLS listings in the U.S., clearly indicates that home prices haven’t changed and overvalued properties are still very prevalent. Despite the Federal Reserve dropping the benchmark interest rate for private financial institutions to 0%, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate spiked 0.3% higher this month. Right now, 30-year loans from the same banks with 0% interest rates, zero reserve requirements, and a trillion dollars spoon-fed to them daily, the real estate loan rate is still set at 3.65%. Moreover, the government-owned Freddie Mac released data that shows its rates are still stuck at 4.28% this week as well.

Economists Envision a Complete Shutdown of the American Housing Market

As Covid-19 continues to escalate in the U.S., American economists are predicting an “absolutely brutal” housing market report next month. This is because the real estate market is dealing with a shocked U.S. economy and prospective homeowners are putting off purchasing properties right now with the currently crippled financial situation. The American Association of Realtors noted that a great number of real estate firms have restricted open houses and property showings due to the coronavirus. Even without the restrictions, people are canceling showings and open house listings are being rescheduled abruptly. For example, during the first week of March, 193 homes in San Francisco were listed as “active,” but now 172 of those same properties are now on a “hold” status.

Lendingtree chief economist Tendayi Kapfidze thinks that the U.S. might see a complete “shutdown in the housing market” soon, according to his recent interview with Yahoo Finance. Kapfidze noted that the U.S. real estate market could be in for a rude awakening and a “drastic impact” might be in the cards. Further, Kapfidze highlighted that American homeowners are sitting on a record $18.7 trillion in home equity, but they are not rushing the banks to refinance. “People are more wary about taking on high levels of debt on their homes. A lot of people lost homes because they took on too much debt during the financial crisis,” Kapfidze stressed in another interview published on March 18.

Capital Economics: Unemployment and Increasingly Restrictive Measures Are the Key Reasons Real Estate Markets Will Suffer

Kapfidze is not the only economist who understands that the real estate industry is facing a looming recession across the nation. A recently published analysis from Capital Economics notes that the housing industry should brace for a storm and home sales could plunge 35% by the end of next month. Capital Economics cites the American economy’s current standstill and stressed that this trend will likely continue to force people out of jobs.

Key reasons include “increasingly restrictive measures on people’s movement, and an imminent surge in unemployment,” the Capital Economics property economist Matthew Pointon noted in the report. Further, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) also recognized that there’s been a significant drop in buyer and seller interest across the board. Interest levels declined 3X more than usual and confidence in homeownership is declining considerably.

“The decline in confidence related to the direction of the economy coupled with the unprecedented measures taken to combat the spread of Covid-19, including major social distancing efforts nationwide, are naturally bringing an abundance of caution among buyers and sellers,” reported Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the NAR. “With fewer listings in what’s already a housing shortage environment, home prices are likely to hold steady.”

While Manipulated Markets Become an ‘Opportunity’ for JPMorgan, the World Desperately Needs a Censorship-Resistant and Non-Trust-Based Financial System

While the real estate industry faces collapse, economists and speculators have wondered if digital currencies like bitcoin are a better investment than office, retail, industrial, and multi-family home-ownership. Gold and precious metal markets, which are often perceived as safe havens, have been suppressed and held down the same way they were manipulated in 2007-2008. Real estate properties have always produced revenue and profits and have offered one of the best risk-adjusted returns of the major asset classes so far. Although during the subprime mortgage crisis, home sales dived and real estate markets also faltered in 2017. BTC’s phenomenal performance outshined real estate investments by a long shot that year. However, BTC’s performance changed drastically in 2018 and 2019 and the housing industry saw some steady growth and performed better than most coins in the cryptoconomy.

At the moment the world is at a crossroads and with the real estate industry facing impending hardships, property investments might end up turning into a much softer asset class. More than ever, the world needs censorship-resistant money that will keep people’s wealth safe from manipulation. Unfortunately, history shows both real estate and precious metals markets are rife with oversaturation during economic hardships. We all know that precious metals offer industrial use as far as intrinsic value is concerned. Property ownership can also be valuable because homes are scarce and necessary. But right now more than ever, as banks are faced with significant cash liquidity issues, Americans and global citizens need permissionless finance to shelter them from the storm. 0% interest and trillions of dollars are being funneled into the hands of private banks and the bailouts are not trickling down to common citizens. Wall Street bankers are prospering and are actually smiling because declining stock markets and housing market fears will line their pockets. Take for instance JPMorgan’s CEO Jamie Dimon’s recent statements on CNBC. Dimon disclosed:

I don’t look at recessions as a bad thing. I mean, it’s bad for America. It’s bad for the people that are unemployed. It’s usually an opportunity for JPMorgan.

Satoshi Nakamoto knew society could not trust the current banking cartel and the inventor designed his system specifically to remove third parties. “I think this is the first time we’re trying a decentralized, non-trust-based system,” Nakamoto said in February 2009. Bitcoin was created because the modern central banking system and even precious metals and real estate markets have been manipulated for years.

Stocks, real estate and gold markets require a trusted entity to keep the system going and nine times out of ten, crony politicians, the Fed and bankers like Jamie Dimon ruin confidence. If anything, the current economic crisis has shown society that precious metals and real estate investments, even though they have been trusted for centuries, are faltering and confidence is lacking among participants. The world needs a monetary system that cannot be manipulated on a whim and Nakamoto provided society with this invention 11 years ago.

“The root problem with conventional currency is all the trust that’s required to make it work,” Nakamoto wrote years ago. “The central bank must be trusted not to debase the currency, but the history of fiat currencies is full of breaches of that trust. Banks must be trusted to hold our money and transfer it electronically, but they lend it out in waves of credit bubbles with barely a fraction in reserve.”

What do you think about the real estate industry’s hardships in the near future? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

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