I predict that bitcoin will likely usurp gold's role as a Store of Value and that it might actually empower silver as an emerging private cash Medium of Exchange.
Here's why:
Bitcoin transaction fees are prohibitive for everyday commerce.
Lightning is still quite challenging for most people to hold their own keys and manage their own payment channels.
Other Layer 2 solutions like Liquid and eCash are digital Promissory Notes that require trusting third parties to honor their I.O.U.'s (kinda back to where this whole thing started and what early bitcoiners were trying to get away from).
These are all useful but it is important to know and manage your risks.
I posit that there is an emerging place for silver as a true bearer cash asset with all the privacy benefits. And it can help solve the "last mile" problem for daily, in-person commerce.
Silver is a physical asset without counter-party risk which makes it a trustless savings and trading alternative for the millions of people who cannot afford an on-chain transaction.
I believe Bitcoin can make silver shine again as it brings awareness to the value of non-IOU money.
Continuing the thought:
Historically, gold was used primarily as a Store of Value and for large purchases.
The need to store it and protect it gave rise to centralized power structures that could control the vaults and cook the books, thereby gaining more power to forcefully push out competing currencies like silver.
Bitcoin puts the power of storage, security, and influence back into the hands of the individual allowing a non-IOU bearer cash asset like silver to re-emerge once again as a Medium of Exchange (and savings for those who don't have enough to afford on-chain bitcoin savings) with bitcoin taking on the new role as the premier Store of Value for larger amounts.
But this can only happen to any significant degree after the dollar collapse and the accompanying weakening of these centralized power structures who only survive by controlling the fiat printing press.
It’s an interesting idea, though I hope it never happens for the following reason.
Silver has a stock to flow of about 20 - or 5% new stock every year. So it’s not going to play a huge role as a long term store of value, as you mention. More comparable to dollar bills.
So if it did happen, it’s a world where cash has been outlawed, and also dollars and other currencies are depreciating far faster than silver - enough to go back to this place. I kind of hope not, but you might say we’re already halfway there..
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I like your thinking, but: what position does silver have in a digital world?
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Quite simply, we also live in a physical world. Many people want to hold something physical and tangible. With things like AI, I believe things that are "real" will regain their desirability. No need to have battery power or connectivity to transact. Plus, it's a private, non-IOU money
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0 sats \ 1 reply \ @Fabs 19 Feb
And for that we will return to silver?
It's bulky, can get heavy, is subject to being faked (I don't know the fitting translation rn) is heavily manipulated through paper-silver and simply out-of-place in an increasing digital society- how many people born in 2000's still carry cash with them? Most only a bill or two for emergencies... That's it.
I like the idea, but I don't think it'll come to fruition again.
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Yes, it will be interesting to see
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