I think there will always be fiat currencies, because governments will always create them. They may all become digital though. But maybe not. Who wants to be unable to pay for something simply because there is no electricity to power one's devices to? Paper money does have some use.
You are viewing a single comment's thread from:
So, given various developments and trends of the future, you think there will be no "upgrade" to fiat currencies (other than a potential all digital perspective)? 50 years ago there were no digital money and US dollar was backed by gold. Change happens, even when government and banks are involved.
It happens, but generally in a way that benefits the ones in charge. If there is a radical transformation of governance, then of course the idea of money could change radically with it. But right now fiat (the idea that money is unlimited and backed by nothing but the police/military threat of the country issuing it) serves the powers that be quite well.
I think the thing we have to be more concerned about as we try to transition towards alternative forms of money that are digital like crypto is that the govt. might co-opt this idea and turn it into completely traceable money tied to our biometrics. There is already a thing called AML bitcoin that works that way, which thankfully is not catching on.
Say what you will about paper money, but at least a poor person with no legal identification can earn it and spend it without the government stopping them. And you and I can also have lots of private transactions with cash also. Even out in the middle of nowhere with no cell service, we can still buy water from a roadside stand or pay for gas. And if we criticize the government, we don't have to worry that we'll suddenly lose the ability to do all these things.
I see governments becoming more authoritarian lately, so the likelihood is that any new money would be more authoritarian.
Yes, unfortunately I agree. Governments will fight to keep and increase control, now that control may be slipping through their fingers, when people realize there can be more freedom and less bureaucracy. I also agree about paper money, I still use them, as well as digital.