Bitcoin...surprised there isn’t more uk discussion/press coverage?

[Dancinggertrude]

Bitcoin has had an interesting few months, steadily rising.
Twitter feeds are full of American discussion about it, US press coverage etc.
Yet here it is still not v mainstream..
Aibu to be surprised ?
I’m neither a convert to bitcoin or an investor btw, I like to dabble and watching the charts /world press coverage really interests me.
Most (Uk)people I mention it to aren’t even aware you can purchase fractional bitcoin.

I don't think the UK wants to encourage it, so it's not surprising there isn't much coverage to be honest.

My dad and my husband both invested in bitcoin (and some other cryptos) years ago but you re right aboyt the fact that a lot of people in the uk dont know much about it! I bet there is a bigger reason behind the scenes why its not being talked about in media.

Sure that’s understandable.
But it’s so globally relevant right now, hugely contentious and discussed in so many places...

I would agree. There is a lot of interesting stuff happening with cryptocurrency that 99% of people are (at the moment) completely unaware of.

I have some bitcoin and also some XRP.

If you’re interested in new technology, have a look at what Ripple/R3/Moneygram are doing with XRP and have a read of plans if it’s use within the fintec world, particularly cross-border settlement. There’s a real chance (IMO) that my XRP investment could be the opportunity of a lifetime.

@paddybare
I agree completely about xrp.
Surely knowing about cryptocurrency in these reasonably early stages is quite empowering for women (some people suggest it could be like the people who bought 3 digit domain names in the early 90s)
Im just surprised there haven’t been more threads on it

What is it you feel needs more coverage?

I think the misconception is that you need 1000s to invest. When the reality is you could put £2.50 in and see how it goes over the years 🤷‍♀️

@gindaddy I don’t feel it needs more coverage as such.
Im surprised there isn’t more.
Aibu to be surprised ?
It’s a global issue relating to politics economics everywhere. It’s exciting. Interesting.
Im surprised more people aren’t talking about it.
Im surprised more people on here aren’t discussing it, in terms of financial literacy , questioning it, learning about it.

I mean... it’s doubled in price in 3 months. At one point hitting 10k.
And still average joe on the street in the uk has no idea what it is, and looks at you like you’ve sprouted horns if you use the word cryptocurrency.

I think the level of press coverage is appropriate.

The FCA released new guidance on cryptocurrencies yesterday and that seems to have been widely covered. It's a niche interest and I'm perfectly happy that the UK press isn't encouraging high risk investment in assets with no intrinsic value.

But it’s niche in the UK.
In other parts of the world not so niche at all..

I am amazed that there isn't more coverage, and at the poor level of insight when it is covered.

I disappeared down the bitcoin rabbit hole a while ago. Thinking that its an investment is just the first stage, once you actually realise the full power of cryptocurrency, its mindblowing....smart contracts, governance, privacy, identity are alll being redrawn and barely anyone is paying attention.

Bitcoin is a gateway to a whole new economic and political consciousness.

@cailleachian that’s what I meant really .
You put it far more eloquently!

It received a lot of coverage the last time it went up and it created a bubble with loads of people were investing.

It then crashed and people realised it is like any other asset, it can go up or down. It has failed to take off as an alternative to other methods of payments so I don't think it deserve any coverage really.

Like most things financial, unless it's your money on the line, you don't really care about the price. Have you seen what tungsten has been doing recently?

I have lost my password. I invested 3 years ago. I'm so annoyed. Any hints? Does anyone know how many letters numbers is acceptable for me to remember? Think I bought through coin base.

Coinbase isnt a wallet itself so you must have stored it somewhere

17% of the UK economy is classic financial markets. It's no surprise at all that noise about things like Bitcoin are deprecated by the media.

Not that I think bitcoin is of any intrinsic value. It's helping destroy the planet as cryptocurrency miners use more and more electricity to get their "free" money, and it'll be down in future textbooks as another example of goldrush boom/bust. If there's a future to have textbooks in.

In the meantime, sure, dabble in the bitcoin market and risk your savings. Or get phenominally rich on a currency that isn't tanking like the domest pound. Who knows? Have fun!

@soapona Coinbase is like a bank for bitcoin (and other cryptos) who hold bitcoin on your behalf, so if you held it in Coinbase, their customer services team should be able to reset your password so long as you went through their verification procedure.

But if you held your own bitcoin and have lost the private key, those bitcoins are gone forever.

*domestic pound. Also "phenomenally". Thanks, automisspell.

Bitcoins a bit crap - and too overexposed.

Of much more interest is the blockchain behind it. Especially as 80% of people really don't get it.

Personally I'm very wary of the "cryptocurrency as investment" movement - more sharks than minnows. And I write that having seen a good return on the £50 I messed around with when I was looking into Bitcoin for my employer in 2011 .

Interesting points @dgrossetti

When you talk blockchain, you inevitably encounter people who simply don't get it, and insist there's no need for it. I suspect Enrico Fermi had a similar time trying to explain nuclear power to people who could only think in terms of steam engines.

The biggest resistance to blockchain comes from the people and industries that don't like public immutable ledgers - crooks mainly. And I include a lot of lawyers, banks and politicians in that label.

You are right @DGRossetti, people dont understand it, and dont recognise the paradigm shift behind it. Most people's thinking of bitcoin is "how many pounds can I exchange for it" without recognising the value of bitcoin and its derivatives in its own right.

Although I dont see how you can have blockchain without bitcoin, as bitcoin is the incentive for people to secure the network. WIthout bitcoin there is no reason for people to keep the ledger.

The biggest resistance to blockchain comes from the people and industries that don't like public immutable ledgers - crooks mainly.

It's very popular for online drug transactions.

It's very popular for online drug transactions.

As I said, a lot of people don't understand it. Since most criminals are generally a bit thick, that means more of them. They appear to have read somewhere (or someone read it to them) that BTC and cryptocurrencies are somehow magically anonymous. Which they aren't.

Anyway, I bought £50, and have about £120 left having spent £300 or so. One of the better bits of research I did.

Of much more interest, use and less understood is the fact that the blockchain is itself a state machine that can be programmed exactly like a computer. Smart contracts being the exemplar.