Latest news about Bitcoin and all cryptocurrencies. Your daily crypto news habit.
Professor of Economics, Sergei Guriev, told Cointelegraph how Bitcoin can be used as a tool to combat authoritarian regimes.
Sergei Guriev, professor of Economics at Parisâ Sciences Po and a critic of Vladimir Putin, told Cointelegraph how Bitcoin can be used as a tool to combat authoritarian regimes despite having âno fundamental social value.â
Unlike fiat currencies, the purchasing power of Bitcoin is not backed by any institution. That is why, according to Guriev, âBitcoin is a merely speculative instrument without any fundamental value.âÂ
He also pointed out that, unlike company stocks, Bitcoin does not produce or promise to produce cash flow.
âBitcoin is not producing anything of additional value,â he said. Itâs value is âonly contingent on all parties being happy to use it as a medium of exchange,â points out Guriev.Â
However, Guriev recognizes Bitcoinâs important role in authoritarian regimes. In countries such as Russia, it is used as a valuable tool to support the opposition anonymously.Â
âThe Russian government makes sure that non-anonymous donors of the opposition are somehow harassed or prosecuted,â he told Cointelegraph.Â
Guriev himself led Russia to escape harassment by Russian authorities after he openly supported the local opposition to Vladimir Putinâs regime.Â
According to Guriev, the pseudonymity of Bitcoin and its censorship resistance are the main reason why Russia is about to pass a law that will crack down on digital currencies in the country.Â
âAnonymous fundraising tools like digital currencies are the enemy of the Russian State,â he states.Â
Check out the full interview on our YouTube channel and donât forget to subscribe!
Disclaimer
The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not reflect the views of Bitcoin Insider. Every investment and trading move involves risk - this is especially true for cryptocurrencies given their volatility. We strongly advise our readers to conduct their own research when making a decision.