Bitcoin's Hijacked Vision: From Digital Cash to Institutional Asset
I recently had an eye-opening conversation with Margot Ridler about Bitcoin's evolution that I think everyone needs to hear. What began as a discussion about how to actually use Bitcoin quickly turned into a deep dive into how the original vision for this technology has been systematically redirected.
Back in 2020 when COVID lockdowns were in full swing, many people (including Margot) began looking more closely at Bitcoin as a potential safeguard against financial censorship. There were disturbing reports of people having their bank accounts frozen simply for speaking against government measures. Bitcoin, with its original promise of peer-to-peer digital cash without middlemen or surveillance, seemed like the perfect solution.
I was struck by Margot's observations about how drastically the Bitcoin narrative shifted almost overnight. In early 2020, the focus was on usability, low fees, and financial sovereignty. By 2021, Michael Saylor and others had transformed the message to "digital gold" that should never be spent, only held. The "number go up" philosophy replaced the original peer-to-peer vision, effectively stripping Bitcoin of its most revolutionary aspect.
What's most revealing is the apparent deception from major financial institutions. While BlackRock's Larry Fink, JP Morgan's Jamie Dimon, and others publicly dismissed Bitcoin as a fraud that would "go to zero," their organizations were secretly building blockchain infrastructure behind the scenes. By 2023, these same institutions were launching ETFs and embracing cryptocurrency publicly.
Margot's research uncovered that financial institutions worldwide have been implementing blockchain technologies since 2016, creating rails for various cryptocurrencies while publicly criticizing them. This level of coordinated messaging versus private action suggests something much larger at play than simple market evolution.
The implications are significant. As we move toward bank-issued coins, CBDCs, and increasingly surveilled financial systems, the original promise of Bitcoin as a tool for financial freedom becomes more important than ever. These new digital currencies will likely come with enticing benefits that mask their true purpose: greater control over how, when, and where you can spend your money.
I believe we're at a critical juncture in monetary history. The question isn't whether digital currencies will dominate - they will. The question is whether we'll preserve the freedom-enhancing aspects of the original Bitcoin vision or surrender to a system of convenience that gradually erodes our financial sovereignty.
What are your thoughts? Are you using Bitcoin as originally intended, or have you fallen into the "just hold it" mentality? The choice might be more important than most realize.
Check out the full video here.
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