23 December 2023
The former CEO and co-founder of crypto exchange BitMEX, Arthur Hayes, has shared his thoughts on what could lead to Bitcoin’s downfall. His recent comment also echoes the reservation that the crypto founder has about the potential launch of Spot Bitcoin ETFs.
TradFi Could Lead To Bitcoin’s Downfall
In his last article for the year, Hayes stated that TradFi asset managers would “completely destroy Bitcoin” if the ETFs managed by them were a huge success. He made this assertion as he alluded to Bitcoin’s uniqueness. Hayes mentioned that the foremost crypto token is different from “every other monetary instrument humanity has ever used.”
Due to Bitcoin’s uniqueness, Hayes believes that it wasn’t created to be in the hands of these asset managers. As such, they could end up destroying the crypto token, especially in a world where the world’s largest asset managers end up holding all the Bitcoin in circulation. If that were to happen, these firms would end up storing these crypto tokens, which shouldn’t be so in Hayes’ opinion.
The BitMEX co-founder noted that Bitcoin “only exists if it moves” and that it will “die” if it isn’t used. His stance stems from the fact that he sees Bitcoin more as an asset that is meant to be actively traded rather than just being a store of value. He also highlighted the fact that the Bitcoin network would also die if this were to happen.
Miners are known to earn transaction fees from the network being utilized. However, if these tokens were no longer traded but all stored up, these miners would have no choice but to wind up their operations. Without these miners, “the network dies, and Bitcoin vanishes,” Hayes asserted.
Hayes’ Reservations About A Spot Bitcoin ETF
Arthur Hayes’ latest comment comes ahead of a potential approval of the pending Spot Bitcoin ETF applications. The former BitMEX CEO has previously made his reservations known about these funds and their issuers. Then, he mentioned that these TradFi institutions weren’t bullish on Bitcoin but were simply making this move to become “crypto gatekeepers.”
Hayes also went as far as to discuss how these firms’ interest in Bitcoin goes against Satoshi’s vision of a decentralized system. However, unlike Hayes, some are looking to look at the bright side and how institutional interest in the foremost cryptocurrency can help with mainstream adoption.
Bloomberg Analyst Eric Balchunas had once touched on the importance of these Spot Bitcoin ETFs, especially considering that many could just choose to hold Bitcoin instead. In his opinion, these ETFs are important because of the convenience they provide investors. Meanwhile, others are excited about the amount of capital that could flow in when these ETFs get approved.