crypto currency investing, anyone?

[Dan the man]

Bitcoin is a "fiat currency" which means it has no real value other than the perception that it does have value. It is strings of 1's and 0's in the cloud and was made up by some fairly imaginative people. By advocates saying it has value, some folks believe it.
I am a metals guy myself and in retirement I can't afford to make any mistakes. But aside from the usual mutual funds and EFT's my portfolio is heavy with gold and silver. I am consoled by the fact that metals are a real value and not a "fiat currency".
Bitcoin always seemed like a scam to me, and I have yet to hear anyone make a sensible argument telling where the value comes from.
JMHO------------DR

I sometimes wish that I would have invested more money and in different areas, but I can't complain as I'm blessed with a awesome social security benefits and money in the bank, I'm not rich by any means, but comfortable. Not to brag but in 2011 we paid off our 4 year old house. In 2019 we bought a new 2018 Taurus that was left over from 2018 and bought a new 2019 Colorado z71 and paid cash for them.

 

[dukeboy440]

Bitcoin is a "fiat currency" which means it has no real value other than the perception that it does have value. It is strings of 1's and 0's in the cloud and was made up by some fairly imaginative people. By advocates saying it has value, some folks believe it.
I am a metals guy myself and in retirement I can't afford to make any mistakes. But aside from the usual mutual funds and EFT's my portfolio is heavy with gold and silver. I am consoled by the fact that metals are a real value and not a "fiat currency".
Bitcoin always seemed like a scam to me, and I have yet to hear anyone make a sensible argument telling where the value comes from.
JMHO------------DR

So is the dollar technically

 

[DesertRat]

So is the dollar technically

Very true DB 318. Since 1971 when Nixon unhinged the dollar from the price of metals the dollar has been a Fiat Currency as well. The Chinese wanted to be paid in gold/silver so Nixon decoupled the dollar from being a "silver certificate" and let it float. The only value the dollar has now is in our perception that it has value. And globally for now at least it is the most preferred currency in the world. This is based on the fact that our government says they will pay their debts and I guess their word means something for now too.
(Disclaimer) I may have a detail or 2 wrong in the above statement but fundamentally that is how it went down.

 

[dukeboy440]

Very true DB 318. Since 1971 when Nixon unhinged the dollar from the price of metals the dollar has been a Fiat Currency as well. The Chinese wanted to be paid in gold/silver so Nixon decoupled the dollar from being a "silver certificate" and let it float. The only value the dollar has now is in our perception that it has value. And globally for now at least it is the most preferred currency in the world. This is based on the fact that our government says they will pay their debts and I guess their word means something for now too.
(Disclaimer) I may have a detail or 2 wrong in the above statement but fundamentally that is how it went down.

I think you have it mostly right.

 

[Bigdummy]

So a gold/ silver Roth Ira wouldn't be bad?

 

[barbee6043]

Back in '71 or so when they stopped backing the $ with gold, Pa said the world will go to chit! To survive 20 odd years in the Marines and two good size wars, he wasn't no fool!

Bitcoin gives me that NOT warm and fuzzy feeling, as does the talk of world banks ( and US) going to digital currency and digital IDs.

By the way I am a po *** and admit it!

 

[rustycowll69]

For those into precious metals, I remember, years ago, that the Hunt(?) bros. tried to cut a fat hog and corner the market on silver. I think this was around the time that silver was critical to processing photographic film. At any rate, they drove the market up artificially by buying it all up and then the market crashed. They lost their asses on it.

 

[barbee6043]

I'm investing in hamburger.

 

[Brooks James]

I’m kicking myself right now. I bought MGM stock in 2020, at 14.00 a share. It went to 21.00, so I sold it. It’s above 44 a share today.

I bought Ford stock when it tanked during the Great Recession@ $5 per share. I knew that the gubment would not let an original cornerstone of the economy collapse as it would have created a domino effect.

 

[Dan the man]

Back in '71 or so when they stopped backing the $ with gold, Pa said the world will go to chit! To survive 20 odd years in the Marines and two good size wars, he wasn't no fool!

Bitcoin gives me that NOT warm and fuzzy feeling, as does the talk of world banks ( and US) going to digital currency and digital IDs.

By the way I am a po *** and admit it!

Some of the digital currency is the people's own fault as they use debit cards, charge cards, smart phones. I don't have a debit card, atm card, smart phone and I'm proud of it. We have to prepay for the fuel for our cars and I still pay cash. The increase in identity theft is also a big fault of the people as they have made it easier for them to do so by using all of these so called easier ways of buying things. Online shopping is also responsible for identity theft going up. When you put your personal information out there so much what do you think is going to happen? Stop and think about it, if you are using plastic for everything, you become easier to track everything you do, cash not so much. I still write checks for all of our bills and I do my own shopping, I don't need someone to do it for me and bring it to my house.

 

[barbee6043]

Digital as in NO currency.

 

[Dan the man]

Digital as in NO currency.

This is true. As I said earlier, some of this is our fault as everyone wants faster, more convenient. I don't remember what the explosive is called but it knocks out everything electrical, which means no phone's, iPhone, iPad's and no way to buy anything. I'm not sure that we will be 100% plastic and least I hope not

 

[bcschief]

Bitcoin is a "fiat currency" which means it has no real value other than the perception that it does have value. It is strings of 1's and 0's in the cloud and was made up by some fairly imaginative people. By advocates saying it has value, some folks believe it.
I am a metals guy myself and in retirement I can't afford to make any mistakes. But aside from the usual mutual funds and EFT's my portfolio is heavy with gold and silver. I am consoled by the fact that metals are a real value and not a "fiat currency".
Bitcoin always seemed like a scam to me, and I have yet to hear anyone make a sensible argument telling where the value comes from.
JMHO------------DR

The US dollar is fiat currency since we went off the gold standard.

 

[dukeboy440]

I bought Ford stock when it tanked during the Great Recession@ $5 per share. I knew that the gubment would not let an original cornerstone of the economy collapse as it would have created a domino effect.

I was off work on medical when that happened so I didn’t have any spare funds sadly.

 

[dukeboy440]

This is true. As I said earlier, some of this is our fault as everyone wants faster, more convenient. I don't remember what the explosive is called but it knocks out everything electrical, which means no phone's, iPhone, iPad's and no way to buy anything. I'm not sure that we will be 100% plastic and least I hope not

You do understand how and what Bitcoin is right? Like fully? It’s not entirely just made up. I mean it is, but it does actually perform a function. It’s the only crypto that actually does. The rest are just made up fiats.

You’re actually using Bitcoin’s technology and you likely don’t even know it. Matter of fact, everyone with a bank account or internet is using Bitcoin and contributes to its use

 

[dukeboy440]

Back in '71 or so when they stopped backing the $ with gold, Pa said the world will go to chit! To survive 20 odd years in the Marines and two good size wars, he wasn't no fool!

Bitcoin gives me that NOT warm and fuzzy feeling, as does the talk of world banks ( and US) going to digital currency and digital IDs.

By the way I am a po *** and admit it!

This is all true. Honestly, I don’t have a warm and fuzzy long term on it. But it’s only part of my short term investments. Like I said, I diversify and even hold physical assets. Silver mostly as it’s easiest for me to buy and sell locally

 

[crackedback]

I bought Ford stock when it tanked during the Great Recession@ $5 per share. I knew that the gubment would not let an original cornerstone of the economy collapse as it would have created a domino effect.

If you had spent the same amount of money in 2007-2008 on the SP500 or Nasdaq index, you'd be up about 4X and 7X instead of barely 2x...

At least Ford is back to paying a dividend. With a DRIP the return would be better 3x.

 

[crackedback]

I see that FTX knucklehead is fighting extradition back to the US. Another of the crypto version of "Inventing Anna". Dude snowed a lot of "sophisticated" investors.

There are so many hidden assets that unless that dude gets life, he'll get out and live the good life. At least until someone that he screwed offs him.

 

[Mr.Green]

I think that’s a fair high-level description, and a lot of people hit the same wall when they first look into crypto. At its core, the math and cryptography are there to remove the need for trust in a central authority. Miners or validators aren’t just “printing money” at random; they’re being rewarded for securing the network and following very strict rules coded into the protocol, usually with a fixed or predictable supply schedule. And you’re right about backing - crypto isn’t backed by a physical asset, but neither are modern fiat currencies; both ultimately derive value from collective trust, adoption, and utility.That said, this is also where projects like Banana Pro try to differentiate themselves. Instead of focusing only on mining or raw transaction processing, Banana Pro aims to build utility and community-driven value on top of blockchain technology. Whether it succeeds or not depends on execution, transparency, and real-world use cases, but it’s a good example of how crypto has evolved beyond just “math and computers” into ecosystems, products, and brands that people choose to support - similar, in a way, to how fiat money relies on confidence and participation rather than hard backing.

 

[MOPARMAGA]

I'm still to poor to get rich, dang it .

 

[barbee6043]

I think that’s a fair high-level description, and a lot of people hit the same wall when they first look into crypto. At its core, the math and cryptography are there to remove the need for trust in a central authority. Miners or validators aren’t just “printing money” at random; they’re being rewarded for securing the network and following very strict rules coded into the protocol, usually with a fixed or predictable supply schedule. And you’re right about backing - crypto isn’t backed by a physical asset, but neither are modern fiat currencies; both ultimately derive value from collective trust, adoption, and utility.That said, this is also where projects like Banana Pro try to differentiate themselves. Instead of focusing only on mining or raw transaction processing, Banana Pro aims to build utility and community-driven value on top of blockchain technology. Whether it succeeds or not depends on execution, transparency, and real-world use cases, but it’s a good example of how crypto has evolved beyond just “math and computers” into ecosystems, products, and brands that people choose to support - similar, in a way, to how fiat money relies on confidence and participation rather than hard backing.

Sounds like the perfect monetary medium for the 60's hippies!!!

 

[MadScientistMat]

So, about 5 years since this thread started, and nobody's found a use for cryptocurrency other than speculative investments and ransomware payments.

 

[YY1]

Nope.

So far that's it.

 

[YY1]

Oh, wait-

Bribes.

 

[volaredon]

Is crypto even real? I don't deal with phoney money