American stock broker Peter Schiff[1] “technically lost” to ShapeShift[2] CEO and crypto commentator Erik Voorhees[3] in a ‘Bitcoin Debate[4]’ at the SoHo Forum July 2.
The two financial thought leaders debated about the top cryptocurrency Bitcoin[5] (BTC) and its underlying technology blockchain[6], questioning the potential for mass adoption[7], and comparing Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies with other asset types such as fiat money[8] and gold.
Voorhees, the Bitcoin bull of the debate, claimed that Bitcoin will eventually become a substitute for state-backed money, while government structures would be reorganized using blockchain technology. Voorhees argues[9] that Bitcoin is “supremely good money” praising its provable scarcity[10], divisibility, durability, fungibility, portability, and decentralized nature, stating[11]:
“Bitcoin will win because there is now competition in money, and Bitcoin is the best money currently available. Because it’s decentralized, it cannot be stopped.”
Voorhees noted that mass adoption will not happen right away or all at once, arguing Bitcoin will “simply, gradually come to be used as an occasional alternative to fiat.”
Defending Bitcoin bear position, gold investor and financial commentator Schiff argued that Bitcoin is not going to succeed in the future and work as substitute for fiat money since it is not backed by anything except the “confidence” of buyers, which is mostly driven by speculation.
Schiff spoke extensively on the value-creating characteristics of precious metal assets, namely gold, arguing that the fact that the U.S. dollar was once backed by gold is what allowed it to accumulate trust over time. Schiff argued that gold does not have to compete with any other asset, including Bitcoin, which is “replicating[12]
