A lot of what you pay for in business is trust. When you pay more for a name brand, you’re paying for trust. You’re paying extra for the fact that you know that brand is reliable and they’re going to deliver something good. You’re willing to pay more for a person that you can count on, rather than someone who might flake out. Storing money in your bank requires you trusting that they’ll give it back when you want it.
When you start to notice how important trust is, you can really start to see how much we pay for it. What happens when trust becomes decentralized and everyone has access to it?
They say the internet democratized information, but blockchains will democratize trust. The technicalities are still being worked out, and much like the internet in the 90s, blockchains aren’t ready for mass market adoption yet. Even still, the technology has caused us to ask fundamental questions like “what is money?” (I’ll give you a hint: it isn’t always a paper note that’s backed by a central bank.)
What could change if trust were everywhere? Widespread transparency means there’d be no corruption. No murky business practices. We would either see massive change by big institutions, or massive upheaval from the people. The next 10 years will be a crazy time. Don’t write off bitcoin as a silly cryptocurrency. Start looking at the implications of decentralized trust and the removal and third parties.
Leave a Reply