Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by imhoguy 1956 days ago
Ok here is a puzzle: is there any electricity provider who accepts BTC?

BTC runs on fiat money.

2 comments

Actually, I'm aware of several Chinese miners which pay their (hydro) supplier in BTC.

But it's also unusual.

Bitcoin is designed to be deflationary. Anyone who pays anything in BTC is economically irrational.
How else is BTC miner supposed to pay for expenses?
Accordingly, is anyone who saves fiat money also economically irrational?
Actually I would say yes, they are. Once you have a reasonable cash buffer and are out of the danger-zone for random financial ruin most people should invest all excess rather than be paid a pittance for their bank to do it for them.
Yes. Which is why no one invests for the long term by amassing cash alone (fiat money). They invest it in stocks, assets, real estate, and other non-cash holdings.

The common fallacy in Bitcoin circles is that Bitcoin is the only way to keep your money safe from inflation.

In reality, inflation means that your house, your car, your stock investments, and other holdings are also worth more in dollar-denominated amounts. The only thing that becomes less valuable is cash (and fixed return investment vehicles and such).

The goal is for everyone to accept it, but bitcoin is still on a journey to become store of value and medium of exchange.
it'd be a very long journey. the deflationary nature of btc means that people generally don't want to pay in btc, since it would be expected to become more valuable in the future.
That doesn't make any sense.

My amazon stock that I hold is going up in value, and is therefore "deflationary".

But it would be silly to say that I would never have a reason to sell those stocks.

I sell things, whether they are dollars or stock or crypto, because I want to buy something.

if you had 1 amazon share (worth $3286 right now), and $3286 in USD cash, and you wish to buy a $3286 computer, would you rather sell the share to obtain the cash, or transact using your existing USD?
I would have no preference.

It's the same thing.

The only difference maybe, is regarding friction. IE, maybe it is a bit more difficult to immediately sell the Amazon stock at a store.

But transaction friction is different than the deflation argument.