[lbblack]

Ponzi schemes are different than Bitcoin, which is a cryptocurrency by very definition. From Wikipedia,

"A Ponzi scheme can maintain the illusion of a sustainable business as long as new investors contribute new funds, and as long as most of the investors do not demand full repayment and still believe in the non-existent assets they are purported to own."

Bitcoin isn't a business, it's an asset with decentralized production and a distributed ledger. Also, assuming the network isn't down (which it never has been to date) you can liquidate in full immediately. The asset exists and maintains ownership on an individual basis, therefore in direct contradiction to a Ponzi scheme.

I think you could possibly argue that stocks are Ponzi schemes too by your description. Correct me if I'm wrong, it was developed around the 2008 era financial crisis to act as an alternative to US Dollars, in the event that pulling out cash from a bank is no longer a valid option. Public exchanges offer a variety of options to trade BTC to USD, but there wasn't really any of that about a decade ago. It seems more like some of tech has absorbed crypto and incorporated, or designed, their products around it. And personally it doesn't seem likely that cypherpunks have the highest regard for corporate America.