 The cryptocurrency industry has been working overtime to sell a story: that there is a large contingent of voters voting based on candidates’ crypto policy stances. The problem is, it’s a story that does not seem to be well supported by data. https://www.citationneeded.news/when-did-cryptocurrency-become-a-voter-issue/ 15 comments
 @molly0xfff Can't we just call it corruptocurrency ? It kind of rhymes, and is more accurate (and does not implicate cryptographers as being criminals by association) 😎 @molly0xfff Tales From the Crypt-ocurrency" ? I'm here all night - thanks, OK, I'll see myself out... @stardustlovechild @molly0xfff The only times I hear it mentioned IRL, is in the same way one would mention emails from Nigerian princes or calls about my car's extended warranty. @stardustlovechild indeed — that’s partly why i wanted to write this piece, because there are headlines in more mainstream (ie non-crypto industry) publications about the “crypto election” and people who are not as terminally online are going “the what?” An April 2024 survey funded by the Digital Currency Group and published by the crypto lobbying group The Blockchain Association was not shy about aiming its messaging directly at politicians, trying to convince them of the existence of a sizable crypto voting bloc. A glance at the survey design quickly reveals the story the industry was hoping to tell with the results. Even more profound are the kinds of questions that were not included, which could have provided a clearer (but perhaps unwanted) view of voters’ actual beliefs. Furthermore, the supposed number of crypto holders (“52 million”!) that companies like Coinbase like to throw around come largely from a poorly-designed survey with methodology its designers seem unwilling to disclose, and are vastly higher than other estimates. Regardless of the caricatures that have emerged, most cryptocurrency holders are pretty normal people, with nuanced political beliefs and hopes for the future that go far beyond the tokens they hold in their digital wallets. If you found this post valuable, consider signing up for a pay-what-you-want subscription. My writing is never paywalled, and your support goes long way to helping me continue doing this. You can also sign up for free to get my writing in your email. @molly0xfff Of course, crypto is increasingly the ONLY way for Russian individuals and companies to complete purchases with China, etc. A recent article says that about 80% of Russian transactions to China in yuan are blocked now, due to Western pressure and a crackdown on smaller banks, based near the border. As long as Russian crypto exchanges remain a thing, crypto itself is at significant risk of disruption.  @molly0xfff fun fact that I think might be a tiny bit related (in the sense of the push that is happening behind the curtain): a recently-signed bilateral agreement between Ukraine and Poland seems to contain a weird, completely out of place paragraph about how blockchain technology improves transparency and trust in government or something to that effect. :thaenkin: That the type of politicians actually courting crypto types are the same ones who think finance in general should be less regulated and are beloved by billionaires should give anyone with any remaining hope in crypto pause. Really it should've died after Silk Road did. It's just speculative circle jerk looking for a bigger sucker to be left holding the bag. Day trading for people who own multiple Funko Pops. |
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