“Bitcoin is just like gold. Better even . . .” (except when it crashes 20% in 2 weeks)

Photo above - somebody calling themself "Satoshi Takimoto" is the world's largest holder of Bitcoins. He's shy about being photographed. He has over 1 million coins, worth approximately $100 Billion (with a B). But there isn't any paper trail of tax returns, so this story might be bogus too.

Finally! Evidence of economic progress from the Trump administration. Crypto is crashing. I’m not going to give Trump all the credit, but his ongoing affection for meme coins, Musk, and a US national cryptocurrency - to try and pay off the national debt - certainly are playing a part. Putin, and Chairman Xi of China, you can take a bow too. And whoever hacked $1 billion in Bitcoin from a North Korean bunker this week.

Bitcoin was $78,000 a few minutes ago. It was $96,000 a week ago. It was $106,000 at the start of the month. (see link below). To experience this much risk and volatility, you would have to go all in on speculative tech stocks like Nvidia, Super Micro Computer, or a Lithium mining company that so far has failed to bring any of the stuff to the surface (Piedmont Lithium - PLL - down from $78 a share to around $7). Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Especially if it has negative cash flow or doesn’t produce any tangible goods.

Another problem: Bitcoin is thinly traded by a handful of “whales”. The top 1,000 holders have about half the total bitcoins. 95% of us (54 million wallets) have less than $10,000 each. I don’t think anyone outside of the top 1,000 guys has any actual influence on Bitcoin's market price. So, if Bitcoin is down 20% this week alone, they’re probably in a dark web group chat plotting something, no?

Another problem – Bitcoin mining (just Bitcoin, not counting all the other 600+ crypto flavors) has a carbon footprint the size of Argentina. In fact, mining uses more electricity than 160 countries. Reminder – bitcoin mining doesn’t produce food, clothing, or shelter. Bitcoin simply eats electricity and spits out blockchain equations. It's possibly linked to poverty, homelessness, and hunger.

Despite what someone is sure to rant in a reply, I am NOT a gold bug either. I won't try to calculate the carbon footprint of all the actively worked gold mines. But gold doesn’t produce food, clothing or shelter either. It goes into vaults, and to a lesser extent wedding rings.

I’m not telling anyone to rush for the exits if they’re already sitting on 1 bitcoin (or a fractional amount) and are getting nervous. After every crash there is a rally. Then another crash, and so on. So the millions of Bitcoin holders have some breathing room, even if they can never control their own fate. You can't "vote your shares" to change the trajectory and business plan of the company.

We just better pray that bitcoin mining - and AI, and tax subsidized EVs - don’t use up all the electricity. If there’s a blackout, then bitcoin mining stops, and the value REALLY crashes. But people probably won’t care. They’ll be too worried about the food rotting in their refrigerators, no water pressure, and freezing temperatures in their homes.

I’m just sayin’ . . .

Bitcoin Down 25% From All-Time High as Crypto Rout Worsens

Bitcoin Whales 2024: Who are the Biggest Players in the Cryptocurrency Market?

Bitcoin Mining: How Much Electricity It Takes and Why People Are Worried - CNET