Originally published in The Bitcoin BullBear Report released on 12/5/2015. Partial excerpt only. Written by @AKWAnalytics.
Given that the “Scaling Bitcoin” Conference is happening in Hong Kong over the next few days, we will refrain from making any controversial statements about blocksize this week. However, we will talk about another, somewhat surprisingly, touchy subject: Coinbase
In the last week or so, Coinbase (probably the largest US-based bitcoin company) announced the Shift Card, a Visa-branded debit card that you can use online or at POS terminals at merchant that accept Visa. We thought this was a rather exciting development given that this card, temporarilty at least, closes the economic loop in the bitcoin ecosystem, so we ordered one. It came this Monday and we have been using it ever since. The setup was easy, the interfaces are clean, and the purchases are no different than they would be if they were coming from a bank account. All in all, we think this is a GREAT thing for bitcoin and its economy.
So what’s the problem?! Well apparently there are two major ones according to the plebs on /r/ bitcoin. One is the stale old argument of volatility. “Why would anyone want to spend bitcoins when the price moves around so much?” they say. I say, why not?! If I can make a little extra “money” by paying attention to the price and having knowledge thereof (ie, not being lazy), then I can make a little extra money! Also, they say this is only useful for early adopters wanting to cash out. So what?! There are plenty of them around, and they have and will continue to be the main driver of the bitcoin economy for the foreseeable future. Let them have a little fun.
The last complaint we here is that Coinbase is the leader in bitcoin transaction tracking and reporting, but we say that’s also fine as long as you know that going in. Coins that you want to use to make everyday purchases with can stay within the CB ecosystem from the time you buy them until the time you spend them. Keep coins that you don’t want tracked off CB, and any you do purchase there should be properly mixed.
Cheers,
@AKWAnalytics
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