[iopq]

it's cheaper to transfer Bitcoin and immediately convert to fiat than to do a wire transfer from overseas. Then you're using the home banking system like ACH in the US and SEPA in Europe

Wires cost me $50+ because of intermediary banks, even if I don't pay anything at my own bank, someone is getting a big cut.

[shsjxjbsbs]

Don’t companies like TransferWise already do international payments electronically without the need for a blockchain? I definitely support lowering the amount of human labor required for payments, but I don’t see the need for many coal plants worth of computers randomly hashing a bunch of junk over and over again when a normal efficient server can do it.

Every bitcoin exchange I’ve used required me to physically write something on paper and show it to a human, so it seems like the human labor in the banking system is a regulatory issue, not a technical one.

[iopq]

Maybe to sign up, but to actually make trades it's just taking orders off the book.

[shsjxjbsbs]

Sure, but why do I need a blockchain for that? Can’t the service trusted by the government to enforce KYC regulation also run a normal commodity server to process transactions, without burning the earth?

[stordoff]

> Every bitcoin exchange I’ve used required me to physically write something on paper and show it to a human

I'm curious - what did you have to write? Is it just part of proof of identity, or something more?

[leppr]

Usually the date and name of the exchange, to comply with "Know Your Customer" regulations and fight duplicate accounts.

[spookthesunset]

It is only cheaper today because the price of those traditional transfers are set artificially high. Make no mistake if banks had real competition for inter-bank transfers you’d see the price drop to near zero.