Bitcoin is
a "censorship-resistant asset class" – but not quite money –
according to analysts for New York-based firm Bernstein.
In a note
sent to clients on Wednesday, according to Business Insider, analysts explored
that question, ultimately concluding that while it shares some of its
characteristics, it falls short under what would be considered
"money" today.
"Fiat
money is still the final form of settlement – governments still collect taxes
in fiat money and salaries are still paid in fiat money," the note
explained. "Thus, for now, Bitcoin has only emerged as a 'censorship
resistant' asset class."
The
analysts notably reckon that bitcoin's ecosystem functions more like a
self-reliant economy than, say, strictly a network of digital money.
"Bitcoin
could be seen as virtual 'bearer cash' economy supported by a decentralized
'trustless' network – a new crypto economy with its own protocol or
policy," the firm wrote in the note. "The faith of its citizens –
software developers, miners, investors, early individual and sovereign state
adopters [–] would drive the value of that network."
Bernstein's
determination is unlikely to sway proponents who say cryptocurrencies represent
a new form of money. Indeed, it's a sticking point that has drawn both
supporters and critics for as long as bitcoin has been in the public eye.
Some
observers have struck a middle ground in the argument. Last month, investor and
anarcho-capitalist Doug Casey argued that while bitcoin might be money, it's
not likely to last in the long-run.
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