Cryptocurrency — claims and reality

Even after a decade, Bitcoin has not been accepted as a medium of exchange globally by governments, centralised authorities and financial institutions. The European Union has warned the masses against investing in cryptocurrencies, declaring it highly risky, speculative and unsuitable for most retail customers as an investment or a means of payment or exchange. But the question is, what’s wrong with cryptocurrency? The answer is simple: Bitcoin lacks decentralisation, with a few entities monopolising the Bitcoin economy. Bitcoin (BTC) was launched in 2009. Before this, Satoshi Nakamoto — a pseudonymous name — sent an email to a cryptography mailing list on Nov 01 2008 stating: “I’ve been working on a new electronic cash system that’s fully peer-to-peer, with no trusted third party.” While explaining Bitcoin in his white paper, he claimed that Bitcoin is a decentralised currency and does not require a trusted third party, ie, a bank or any financial institution, for its operation.