I get that anything is worth whatever someone is willing to pay for it. That’s besides the point. My point is, beyond speculation, what do crypto coins represent?

I also understand that the value of the US dollar is being questioned almost as much without the backing of gold.

But what I really want to know is what is at the foundation level of Bitcoin that people are buying into?

I have a basic understanding of the blockchain, etc. I sold 1BTC in 2017 for $1200 when I thought that was as high as it would go. At this point, at over $100kUSD and rising steadily, what is the $ limit and what is that limit based upon? I thought it was based on the value of mining to check transactions but this seems… not worth $100k to me.

I’ve been thinking, the only tangible value I personally see in Bitcoin, because it’s not really being used as legitimate currency, is for criminals. By now, there must be trillions of dollars in BTC acquired by criminals holding corporations hostage. When you’ve got people like Trump involved (either explicitly or by way of manipulation) with an executive order to establish a crypto czar, this suggests to me that he’s creating pathways for bad actors to more effectively gain more wealth. These are the people who are most excited in Bitcoin, beyond speculation.

I mean, there’s little to nothing on the up and up with crypto, right? It’s a scam. Right?

Please, factual answers only. I’m looking for someone to dispel my speculation with genuine economics of the matter.

  • @[email protected]
    1•2 days ago

    mining has not compensated for mining for a long time.

    Fees are less than 2%

    The average commission payment is now 1.5 bitcoins. almost half of the reward

    I think you have the wrong units. The average fee is 1.5 USD.

    And it will pay off only in 1.7 years

    This is quite quick. Last time I looked the it was around 3 years. Most of the cost comes from buying the hardware.

    • nitrolife
      1•1 day ago

      This is quite quick. Last time I looked the it was around 3 years. Most of the cost comes from buying the hardware.

      my calculations were made without taking into account the growth of the network’s complexity. So, when I tried it last time, the network’s complexity had increased so much in a year and a half that the equipment was not bringing in much, and it was not worth the risk of investing. However, things may be different now, and I may be mistaken.

      UPD: Now I just buy Bitcoin on exchanges, and it brings me the same % of income as mining. But I don’t have to deal with equipment, follow ridiculous laws, or waste electricity. =) That’s why I say that many peole just tkabe bitclin to cold wallets. Less bitcloin exists on exchage then grow price.

      • @[email protected]
        1•23 hours ago

        When I first looked at Bitcoin it was around $10/BTC and electricity to mine (on a cpu) was about the same.

        The people who make money mining bitcoin have a combination of very cheap electricity and/or next generation asic hardware.

        • nitrolife
          1•4 hours ago

          and yes, I also mined bitcoins on the CPU. back when you could get near 200 bitcoins per hour of work. After that I mined altcoins on video cards, mined through nicehash. what I have not mined. and I can say - it’s all thrown money. much, much more profitable just to buy cryptocurrency and hold on cold wallet.

        • nitrolife
          1•4 hours ago

          if you don’t want to tell me that people are setting up mining farms in Somalia (because it’s pointless from a risk perspective), I don’t think electricity rates are particularly lower anywhere else.

          In any case, you can make money from anything. It’s just that the risks associated with mining don’t justify the investment. That’s all.