Noble Prize Winner Economist Says Bitcoin Should Be Outlawed

The 2001 recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, Joseph Stiglitz, voiced some strong opinions about Bitcoin in his latest interview with Bloomberg Television. Stiglitz is currently serving as a professor and was a former economic advisor to the Clinton Administration and chief economist of the World Bank.

It was said in an interview by Stiglitz to Bloomberg that Bitcoin is successful only because of its potential for circumvention, lack of oversight." By continuing in an interview he said that offering a harsh rebuke and recommendation for the future of the world’s most successful and very popular cryptocurrency, “So it seems to me it ought to be outlawed". He further added that it is of no use as it doesn’t serve any socially useful function.

This is the interview that took place shortly after Bitcoin once again crossed another staggering milestone, surpassing $10,000 and even $11,000 in value. Talking about these levels it is said that Bitcoin is among the 30 largest currencies in the world
Bitcoin is often a target of experts who predict its wild successes and others who foresee the bubble bursting. This rollercoaster valuation ride often gives each side evidence to support their predictions, yet Stiglitz points to regulation from Washington as a potential sniper’s bullet that could bring the entire currency down.

INTRINSIC VALUE?

Before in this year, it was questioned by Forbes contributor Jason Bloomberg that whether Bitcoin held any intrinsic value, that is, the currency’s value outside of the price tag that the market slaps on each coin. He revealed in an interview that he was hard-pressed to find an answer, with many experts pointing to Bitcoin’s market value as its only real value. This is an important part (the question of value) of determining the overall utility of the currency and either proving or debunking Stiglitz’s claim that Bitcoin lacks function.
Various attributes of Bitcoin such as transparency and programmability are pointed by scientist as facets of Bitcoin’s utility, and therefore, value. However it is not satisfying others, Business Insider’s Joe Weisenthal writes, “Gold has real value because it’s shiny and can be used for jewelry…. But what about Bitcoin? If a question is asked to Bitcoin believers that why a Bitcoin is worth anything at all, they will tell you about how amazing the technology is, and how is this ‘programmable’ and how cryptography and pseudoanonymity are so great. But it is said that none of these are very satisfying answers."
This volatility surrounding the currency will likely not die down anytime soon. The sheer unpredictable nature of Bitcoin only bolsters the differing sides, with dips allowing opponents to point toward inevitable collapse and spikes allowing the faithful to point out the currency’s resilience. There is a difficult question that how the currency will fare and only time will tell. These said growing pains of Bitcoin will continue to take us on a wild ride.