I used to believe Bitcoin was the future of global currency, and while no one can argue it has had a massive influence on how decentralised currencies could work, I'm not convinced it is the solution it once promised to be.
Bitcoin promised secure, lightning fast transactions anywhere in the world at virtually no cost, without the need for the strict KYC checks which financial institutions are legally obliged to carry out.
Nowadays however the opposite is true. Bitcoin transactions can take hours, or even days to be confirmed, and the fees for moving even a small amount can be almost as much as what is being transferred. Bitcoin exchanges are constantly under threat of hackers or DDOS attacks and the only way of cashing out Bitcoin is via traditional financial institutions (ie. banks) which makes me wonder, if we cannot escape the banks, and they can move money within a matter of seconds at practically no cost to the account holder, what does Bitcoin really offer? After all would you trust a high street bank with your life savings if they had all the shortcomings and failings of Bitcoin?
Other than a speculative investment, does Bitcoin have a future?