Bitcoin is at a crucial crossroads. As financial giants rush to embrace it, the future of the revolution it promises is at stake. Will we witness true economic emancipation or simply integration into the current monetary and financial system?
The beginning of 2024 marked a turning point. With the arrival of Bitcoin spot ETFs, financial giant BlackRock already holds more than 700,000 BTC, equivalent to more than $75 billion at the current price of Bitcoin in weak money. BlackRock alone owns more than half of the Bitcoins held by all other financial giants. Collectively, these giants control more than 1.2 million Bitcoins. This is astronomical, especially when you consider that there will never be more than 21 million BTC in circulation—and even less, if you consider the estimated 3 to 4 million Bitcoins lost forever. As Satoshi Nakamoto said, this scarcity benefits the rest of the community, but is this the case when it is concentrated in the hands of a few who are not going to use it?
When Bitcoin becomes corporate gold
In addition to this financial stranglehold, there is also the influence of Bitcoin Treasury Companies. Michael J. Saylor, with MicroStrategy, is at the forefront of this movement, holding nearly 600,000 BTC. Following his example, these public companies own more than 850,000 BTC. Adding these figures to the Bitcoins held by governments and other private entities, we easily exceed 3 million BTC that will never be used for Bitcoin's primary mission.
This is where the problem lies: it represents nearly 20% of the usable supply of Bitcoin that is already outside the circular economy centered on the Bitcoin system that we aspire to build.
Satoshi Nakamoto's vision versus financial reality: an ideological struggle
The battle for the soul of Bitcoin is clear. On one side are those pushing for excessive financialization, integrating Bitcoin as a simple store of value within the current system. For BlackRock and Michael J. Saylor, Bitcoin is “digital gold,” a protocol to be ossified, frozen in place. This increasingly dominant narrative masks the true liberating power of the Bitcoin revolution.
On the other side is Satoshi Nakamoto's original vision: a peer-to-peer electronic payment system capable of supporting a decentralized and resilient circular economy. The battle is not lost, but the balance is tipping dangerously in the wrong direction.
It is time to ask: How will the Bitcoin revolution reach its full potential? Certainly not by having millions of Bitcoins held by centralized entities, nor by sterile accumulation. Michael J. Saylor, explaining that he wants his Bitcoins to be lost forever after his death, only exacerbates the problem of unusable BTC. We don't need that.
Take back control: Not your keys, not your Bitcoin
Bitcoin was not designed to replace gold or to be overlaid with complex financial products, depriving people of direct access to this revolutionary monetary system. Buying Bitcoin through a BlackRock ETF or trusting MicroStrategy by purchasing shares marketed by Michael J. Saylor means subjecting yourself to the same problems as with the traditional system. You have no control over the fruits of your labor. You gain access to a high-performing asset, certainly, but without the freedom and sovereignty it is supposed to offer.
Imagine for a moment: there is no guarantee that the Bitcoins held by these giants cannot be confiscated by a government in the future. The US government could very well one day declare that Bitcoin has become vital to the country's higher interests and confiscate the BTC held by financial giants or BlackRock. This is why the mantra “Not your Keys, Not your Bitcoin” is more relevant than ever. If you don't hold your private keys, you only have an empty promise, vulnerable to censorship and confiscation. Decentralization, both of the hash rate and key ownership, is the key to the security and resilience of the network. Seeing Coinbase boast that it stores more than 90% of Bitcoin ETFs is a wake-up call: risk concentration is a direct threat to the future of the Bitcoin revolution.
Individual action: the keys to the revolution's success
For the Bitcoin revolution to succeed, we must take action:
-
Own your Bitcoins directly: Buy your Bitcoin on decentralized platforms (No-KYC, such as Bisq) and store it in cold storage. This is the first step toward autonomy and total control over your capital.
-
Support the network: Run a Bitcoin node. The more decentralized the network is, the more resilient it is. Becoming an active participant means no longer blindly trusting others. If you feel like it, even solo mining with solutions like BitAxe can strengthen decentralization.
-
Use Bitcoin every day: Adopt the “Spend and Replace” approach. Ask to be paid in Bitcoin, and encourage merchants to accept it. The more it is used as a medium of exchange, the more Bitcoin will become indispensable as a medium of exchange and a medium of payment. Appropriate taxation, such as the possible elimination of taxation on current transactions in the United States under a Trump administration, would be a major catalyst for the emergence of a circular economy centered on the Bitcoin system. The American example would likely snowball throughout the rest of the world.
Bitcoin is, as the title of its white paper clearly states, a “Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System.” It is up to us to make this revolution a resounding success. By taking possession of our Bitcoins and actively using them, we can transform them into a real alternative to the fallible and irreparable fiat system, rather than a mere add-on.
Will Bitcoin be a force for economic freedom or just another tool for the powerful? The answer depends on all of us.
