License to print money... BitCoin?

Bitcoin is dragging Ethereum and Ripple to the point where market capitalization of the three is $47, $29, and $10 billion USD.

1 Bitcoin $47,375,434,594 $2891.62 16,383,700 BTC
2 Ethereum $29,248,110,626 $316.64 92,369,941 ETH
3 Ripple $10,116,286,666 $0.263951 38,326,381,283 XRP

Ethereum (less than 2 years old) even has a chance to replace bitcoin as the dominant crypto-currency. Ethereum features smart contract (scripting) functionality, which bitcoin does not.

Ethereum was about $8 at the beginning of 2017, $20 three months ago, $100 a month ago, and now is over $300.

https://www.ethereum.org/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethereum

It seems to be described as a robust hacker proof computing platform suitable for numerous applications one of which is crypto currency. Silk Road Redux????

Anyway, once I saw that orchid seller had a 'bit coin accepted here' logo, I knew bit coin was here to stay no matter what name changes or platform changes there may be down the pipeline.

Ethereum may surpass Bitcoin! It is down less than 20%.

Bitcoin is really only useful as a store of value. In a world where people are used to online payments being confirmed instantly, Bitcoin transactions can take anywhere from tens of minutes to several hours, depending on how busy the network is. It’s also expensive — especially if you’re only sending small amounts. The average transaction currently costs about $1.50.

Ethereum, on the other hand, was never intended as a Bitcoin competitor. Ethereum is actually a platform for new kinds of decentralized (often financial) applications (dApps) that run on a peer-to-peer network of computers. These dApps are designed for the kinds of relationships and transactions for which we have traditionally required things like banks, public registries, and the legal system.

Bitcoin broke $1000 on January 1 2017, a level at which it had been over two years earlier. Now it is hovering around $2700.
On January 1, 2017 ethereum was trading at just under $8 and is now around $396.

Ethereum Classic is at $20.61 as the currency split into two in 2016 after $50 million was stolen in a hack.

People in Venezuela reported flocking to cryptocurrencies amidst triple digit inflation and stores with bare shelves.

Quote: Fleastiff

People in Venezuela reported flocking to cryptocurrencies amidst triple digit inflation and stores with bare shelves.

I would think that Ecuador's system will eventually spread to other countries with unstable currencies.

Quote: Ecaudor.org

10 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT ECUADOR’S ELECTRONIC PAYMENT SYSTEM

1. The electronic money does not replace the use of the U.S. Dollar. Its value is a representation of the same amount of dollars deposited at the BCE that can be transferred to other users through the use of electronic devices. As outlined in article 94 of Ecuador’s new monetary code, all financial and monetary transactions in Ecuador must be performed in U.S. dollars.
2. The electronic money is not a new or parallel currency, and it is not comparable to popular digital currencies such as “Bitcoin”. It is more accurately a payment system implemented by the BCE that is no different from an electronic wallet system used in countries around the world. No new money is being created. It is a new and cheaper method to store and transfer existing money (U.S. dollars).
3. The electronic payment system is regulated by Ecuador’s Monetary and Financial Organic Code, which requires digital money to be 100% backed by liquid assets, which means that for every digital dollar created there has to be a physical U.S. dollar at the BCE.
4. The money used in the new electronic payment system will be transferrable via ATMs, text messages, applications, websites, NFCs, Tablets, and IVRs. 40% of Ecuadorians lack banking services, while 90% of the population owns a cellphone or electronic device compatible with the digital money system.
...

Even though the website says there has to be a "physical" US dollars at the central bank, I am sure that term includes US Treasury bonds which can earn some small amount of interest.

Remember that El Salvador also uses the US dollar even though their currency was very stable. The reason is that so much of the country's money comes from remittances from family members working in the USA that it was actually not cost effective to keep their own currency.

Panama has always used the USD for over a century.

The creation of nearly $100 billion in crypto-currency money in the last few months seems difficult to comprehend, but in general we should look at the rates that banks create money.

Since 1694 it took the Bank of England over 3 centuries for British banks to create a trillion pounds sterling. It then took 8 years to create the second trillion.



In Sweden, like most modern economies, commercial bank money is the most common. The banks’ so called deposits repayable on demand, that is, deposits with a high level of liquidity that can be used for payments, amounts to around SEK 2,200 billion, which is around half of Sweden’s GDP, compared with around SEK 130 billion in central bank money, where cash comprises just over SEK 45 billion. The non cash central bank money is the money that is held in accounts with the Riksbank and it can only be held by those who are allowed to have accounts in the Riksbank, which currently means credit institutions, securities companies, clearing organisations and the Swedish National Debt Office.

Sweden argues that central bank issued crypto currency will allow common people to have central bank electronic money which is as free from the danger of bankruptcy as banknotes.

It seems inevitable to me that Sweden will give the go ahead to create the currency next year, but there may be a powerful backlash from commercial banks.

I've generally thought that the US Dollar was the currency of ultimate stability in that no matter what the fluctuation or official exchange rate people tended trust it more than anything else such much of the world. Oh there were a few exceptions such as Scandinavia but I've been under the impression that such countries were too small to be a universally trusted currency.

All this cryptocurrency seems to reflect a desire to move away from sole reliance on the US Dollar. I don't think its due to a fear of some drastic event involving the US dollar just a realization that bubbles do burst and while the US is a major economy its simply not major enough when we can't repair our own roads and bridges or build modern competitive factories. Even though we have a major transportation sector, even that seems foreign influenced if not outright foreign owned.

Quote: Fleastiff

I've generally thought that the US Dollar was the currency of ultimate stability in that no matter what the fluctuation or official exchange rate people tended trust it more than anything else such much of the world. Oh there were a few exceptions such as Scandinavia but I've been under the impression that such countries were too small to be a universally trusted currency.

I think the "currency of ultimate stability" is the Swiss Franc, but there are only about $60 billion in banknotes circulating in all denominations. While that is a very large amount for a country of 8.4 million, it is still a tiny percentage of the $1,155 billion in US $100 banknotes only.


Scandinavian countries generally do not want their currency circulating outside of the country, because they are afraid of ultra rich speculators.

These countries circulate a very small amount of money in banknotes, so they are easily manipulated by investors.
$4.73 billion Sweden @10 million
$5.29 billion Norway @5.2 million
$9.69 billion Denmark @5.7 million

Sweden still is smarting from the banking crisis of 1991 so they don't want outsiders speculating on their currency.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swedish_banking_rescue

Quote: Fleastiff

All this cryptocurrency seems to reflect a desire to move away from sole reliance on the US Dollar.

There is some people who want to move away from the USD, but others who are just looking for cheaper transaction costs. PayPal is very popular, but the fee is 2.9%. Ideally Sweden is looking at cryptocurrency with zero transaction costs, but they are not interested in speculation.

If Denmark, Norway and Sweden all develop digital currencies there may be some push to return to the currency union of a century ago when all three currencies were based on the same exchange rate with gold. Right now Denmark and Sweden are part of the European Union, but they will probably never adopt the Euro.

300 nm around Copenhagen

Ethereum CRASHED from 319.00 dollars to 0.10 cents.... then rebounded to 325.00 after mysterious 'buy to coins' order was triggered at ten cents. Buyer then sold at 320 dollars a few minutes later.

Source MSN.

Causation: Sell order for 800 million coins triggered massive rush of stop loss orders.

Ethereum honors all transactions including obvious manipulation and covers all losses.