Bitcoin, the upgrade to money

I’m sure at least some of you have heard about bitcoin by now, the open source P2P digital currency project started back in 2009. I came across an interesting interview regarding the subject and I wanted to share it with the good folks at Load The Game. The interview follows the Moscow Bitcoin conference that was held recently and has Roger Ver, bitcoin investor and CEO of Memory Dealers talking with RT about the advantages of the digital currency. You can read the whole interview below:

RT: Why do you think this Moscow Bitcoin conference is important?

Roger Ver: Bitcoin is a global phenomenon. It’s important to everybody on the entire planet. Anybody who uses money, bitcoin is important to them.

RT: Russia isn’t banning bitcoin but when it comes to Russia’s central bank and prosecutor’s office, they are against it; does that suggest bitcoin is not welcome, is that going to change do you think?

RV: I don’t have a direct insight into what goes on inside of Russia but one guy at the conference just a moment ago when I asked that same question, he said nobody cares, so that may be the attitude of the people within Russia. And at the end of the day nobody can block or stop or prevent anyone using bitcoin if they want to, it’s just a protocol and it just works.

RT: If you had to name three reasons why bitcoin is better than traditional money what would they be?

RV: Bitcoin is the first time anyone can send and receive any amount of money with anyone anywhere on the planet. So that’s one reason.

You can now send and receive that money without having to pay any fees to Western Union or a bank or anybody like that, so there’s a second.

And it’s impossible to have your account frozen or seized, that’s just three out of many. I can go on for hours and hours. But bitcoin is so much better than any form of money that’s ever existed before in the history of the world.

RT: What other reasons are there?

RV: No counterfeiting, right? When you or I counterfeit money, we go to jail for counterfeiting, when central banks do it, they call it fancy names like quantative easing or economic stimulus. With bitcoin that can’t happen. There’s a fixed supply of bitcoins, there will never be more than 21 million bitcoins and that’s a fantastic benefit that bitcoin has over traditional government issue currencies.

Another issue is that there are no charge backs, once you’ve been paid with bitcoin you know the money is yours and you don’t have to worry about it being taken away from you months later like you do with a credit card or other forms.

RT: One of the reasons not to use bitcoin is that it can be used for drug purchases and money laundering, is there a way for it to become safer without losing its independence?

RV: If other people are using bitcoins to buy drugs or launder money, it’s not a danger for me, it’s a danger for those people who are getting caught, and it doesn’t affect my Bitcoins either way at all.

RT: Bitcoin’s price has been on a roller coaster, it went beyond a thousand dollars last year and now it’s less than 500, how can you possibly rely on such a currency?

RV: If you look at it over the last couple of years, anybody who bought bitcoin at any period and held it for more than one year, their bitcoins are worth more now than when they initially brought it.