The Screed Against Crypto
BTC dominates these assets, in terms of market capitalization. With Ether, it is the majority of these assets. Yet the chapter lightly considers either of these king cryptos, confining itself largely to stablecoins and other “crypto assets” coming in Bitcoins wake. Making Bitcoin the issue would have been tough for this chapter, which asserts: “Crypto assets have gained substantial popularity in recent years—particularly since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.” In the event, however, “at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic” Bitcoin fell sharply. It picked up slowly over 2020 until the last months. Then it appreciated sharply and far more than any other notable crypto. Indeed, the chart shows that by early 2021, Bitcoin, topped off with Ether, nearly squeezed out everything else in total crypto market cap. This is to say nothing of the highly substantial history of Bitcoin prior to 2020. The chapter, therefore, is about a small corner of the crypto phenomenon, while saying its about the whole. The main point is that crypto assets are associated with all sorts of bad things, “fraudsters” for example. Crypto assets lack “fundamental value.” They “cause risks for financial markets, investors, and customers.” They “are largely speculative investment vehicles and