But we persevered; eventually solving the banking problem, and fighting on until we relaunched full operations in October 2019 with governmental\u00a0approval<\/a>\u00a0\u2014<\/em>\u00a0almost two years later.<\/p>\n There\u2019s this scene that sometimes replays in my mind: One day my CEO sat my boss and me down and said we had shown tremendous resilience in tough times. I looked at my boss and thought for a while. We had been so focused on daily tasks that we\u2019d never once stepped back and doubted:\u00a0\u201cIs this all gonna fail? Have we taken the wrong path? Should we look for another job?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Today, millions of people around the world continue to believe in Bitcoin, and the message continues to spread. Whereas once mainstream media would associate it with drugs and money laundering, today it\u2019s largely covered by business news as a new investment asset. I guess you could say our faith has been rewarded.<\/p>\n But why? Why so much faith in this funny Internet money that nobody can see?<\/p>\n Allow me to get personal; allow me to share why. Almost four years on in my Bitcoin adventure, here\u2019s why I believed in Bitcoin back then. And here\u2019s why I believe in Bitcoin more than ever now.<\/p>\n 10 years ago, if you predicted that one day I would push some buttons on my phone, a random car would show up at my doorstep with a\u00a0stranger<\/em>\u00a0driving, I\u2019d get in confidently, and the stranger would take me exactly where I wanted without discussing the price \u2014 even a tech geek might have called you crazy.<\/p>\n Today, 65-year old aunties regularly use Grab.<\/p>\n Interesting how the world changes eh? We don\u2019t necessarily like thinking about it, because change is painful. But everything we\u2019re used to is actually being \u201cdisrupted<\/a>\u201d all the time. Change itself is human nature.<\/p>\n Think of some other things you use today that were once radical concepts themselves:<\/p>\n Which brings me to money. Money might seem like a static concept that hasn\u2019t changed in our lifetimes. But it\u2019s not. Look through history, and you\u2019ll see money has\u00a0evolved<\/a>\u00a0with everything else \u2014 over decades, centuries and millennia. Long before we used today\u2019s money, humans used barter to trade, then animal skins, then precious metals, and so on.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s a more recent example: For most of us, mention \u201cmoney\u201d and we think about those nice-smelling pieces of paper in your wallet.<\/p>\n But I\u2019ve just spent the last eight weeks isolated at home without using physical money for the first time in my life. I\u2019ve paid for everything using online banking, e-wallets and\u00a0credit cards<\/a>. (I\u2019m sure this isn\u2019t how the government wanted to launch a \u201ccashless\u201d society, but guess the coronavirus just proved it\u2019s possible.)<\/p>\n We already live in the age of digital money. And we know that everything changes. So what\u2019s next?<\/p>\n \u201cI do think there is something very strange about this world of fiat money and exactly about the way it ends.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u2013\u00a0Peter Thiel<\/a>, early Facebook investor \u2013<\/em><\/p>\n What\u2019s the first rule of money?<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t spend more than you earn,\u201d say the responsible adults in the room.<\/p>\n But read the business news and you\u2019ll know governments \u201cbreak\u201d this rule all the time, which is why most countries end up with\u00a0budget deficits<\/a>. Why and how? Are there different money rules for individuals, corporations and governments? Explore down the money rabbit hole, and you\u2019ll start to question this.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s my tip: If you wanna understand money (from a global-level perspective), first throw out everything you believe about money from a personal level.<\/p>\n Another tricky one: What determines the amount of money flowing within a country? If you said \u201cthe amount of gold\/resources a country has,\u201d you\u2019d be in good company. In our personal accounts, the absolute amount of cash you can withdraw is proportionate to assets you have: savings, property, unit trusts, and so on.\u00a0This makes sense.<\/em><\/p>\n But again, this doesn\u2019t apply to countries and governments. The\u00a0gold standard<\/a>\u00a0was ditched in the 1970s, and governments have been free to control their own monetary supply ever since. In other words, nowadays it isn\u2019t gold that determines money. It\u2019s governmental policy around money. Or if we\u2019re being blunt: it\u2019s\u00a0politics<\/em>.<\/p>\n At this point, you might think you\u2019ve just stumbled upon the latest conspiracy theory website on the Internet, written by a good-looking but crazy fake news bro. You might be skeptical, because it goes against everything you believe in. But I assure you, everything above is true. If you\u2019re still in doubt, please continue to do your own research \u2014 here\u2019s an\u00a0article<\/a>\u00a0by the UK Central Bank to start getting your mind blown.<\/p>\n But what does all this have to do with the money in my pocket?<\/p>\n In the last\u00a0financial crisis<\/a>\u00a0of 2008-2009, the US government was faced with a critical situation: due to insane risky practices in the previous decade, huge companies (including banks and insurance companies) were on the brink of going bankrupt. Experts feared the global economy would collapse; an unprecedented clusterf**k caused by human greed.<\/p>\n The US government acted decisively: bailing out several companies which were \u201ctoo big to fail\u201d by loaning them emergency money. In its effort to save the economy, the Federal Reserve (central bank of the USA) also pumped huge quantities of money into the financial system via a process called\u00a0Quantitative Easing<\/a><\/em>. In layman terms, some would call it \u201cprinting money from thin air.\u201d<\/p>\n Over the next few years, almost 4 trillion USD of \u201cnew money\u201d was added to the US monetary supply \u2014 which grew\u00a0more than five-fold<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n (I\u2019m not great at explaining the crisis above, but for more, catch\u00a0The Big Short<\/a><\/em>\u00a0on Netflix. It\u2019s my favorite money movie of all time, and even features Margot Robbie teaching a finance lesson from a bathtub.)<\/p>\n Okay\u2026 back to reality. Printing money was supposed to be temporary. It was supposed to help us fix the Great Recession then scaled back. But while it was once an unconventional idea, central banks started warming up to it.<\/p>\n It\u2019s 2020 now, with economies all around the world sick from the\u00a0coronavirus<\/a>. Central banks are scrambling \u2014 and the money printing has started once again.<\/p>\n Quiz time: What happens when the supply of something goes up by a huge amount but demand remains the same? Right, thank your economics 101 teacher: the value goes down.<\/p>\n Of course it does. You already feel it in this thing called inflation. Every year, the cash in your wallet loses 2-3% of its value.<\/p>\n One of the biggest criticisms against previous Quantitative Easing plans was it would lead to huge devaluation of the US dollar. Devalue a currency too much and you end up with hyperinflation: like Zimbabwe in 2008-2009, where a loaf of bread cost 550 million Z-dollars at one time.<\/p>\n But don\u2019t take my word for it. Ray Dalio, head of the world\u2019s largest hedge fund recently published a breathtaking article titled \u201cThe Changing Value of Money<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n Mr. Dalio presents that relative to gold, most major currencies (including USD, GBR and JPY) have continued to lose their value over time, especially during crises like major wars and recessions. Here\u2019s an interesting chart for you, showing more than 90% devaluations in all major currencies:<\/p>\n Source: Ray Dalio\u00a0LinkedIn<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n \u201cSo if my money is losing value against the\u00a0US dollar<\/a>, which in turn is continuing to lose value against gold, what do I do? Do I wind back the clock and convert everything I own into gold?\u201d<\/p>\n Well, probably not everything. Gold is valuable because people have demanded it for thousands of years, and it\u2019s hard to get. But it\u2019s also difficult to store and move: When was the last time you bought anything using a nugget of gold?<\/p>\n Wouldn\u2019t it be amazing if there was something valuable like gold, but we could send to each other easily like an e-wallet?<\/p>\n Like gold, Bitcoin is hard to get hold of. But it has an additional quality that even gold doesn\u2019t: the supply of Bitcoin is fixed, predictable, and has a maximum limit: only 21 million bitcoins will ever be created.<\/p>\n In a world where unlimited money printing can happen, this should capture your attention.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s\u00a0Paul Jones<\/a>, billionaire investor who predicted the 1987 \u201cBlack Monday\u201d stock market crash:<\/p>\n \u201cIt is literally the only large tradeable asset in the world that has a known fixed maximum supply.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cOwning Bitcoin is a great way to defend oneself against the\u00a0Great Monetary Inflation<\/a>,\u201d<\/p>\n Throw in Bitcoin\u2019s advantages in portability and storage \u2014 you can store, send and receive Bitcoin simply using apps on your phone \u2014 and you have the closest thing to digital gold; only better.<\/p>\n I hope so; and if we\u2019re being honest \u2014 so does everyone else who\u2019s invested. My personal\u00a0price target<\/a>\u00a0is >USD 100,000 per bitcoin before I\u2019d consider selling.<\/p>\n But there\u2019s a bigger reason to park some money in Bitcoin. Like Peter Thiel, Ray Dalio, and Paul Jones, I don\u2019t think the way our global monetary system is heading is sustainable. Historically, this has always led to some kind of major disruption, like a war.<\/p>\n Of course, nobody can predict exactly what happens. But I think it\u2019s prudent to park some money in an alternative asset, which is the least-connected asset to everything else happening in the world of governments and money.<\/p>\n In other words, Bitcoin is my hedge against a crisis in the existing financial world. It\u2019s insurance.<\/p>\n Part of me hopes I\u2019m wrong. Part of me hopes for things to stay the same, even though I know\u00a0change<\/a>\u00a0always happens. If Bitcoin remains at 10,000 USD for eternity in exchange for a stable, peaceful world where people continue to have enough to eat and lead comfortable lives, I would gladly take it.<\/p>\n But what if our fears come true?<\/p>\n<\/span>Change is human nature<\/span><\/h2>\n
\n
<\/span>Even money changes<\/span><\/h3>\n
<\/span>Money can be confusing<\/span><\/h2>\n
<\/span>The world isn\u2019t running out of money; it has too much money<\/span><\/h2>\n
<\/span>My money loses value?<\/span><\/h2>\n
![\"Spot](\"https:\/\/static.imoney.my\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/24171529\/Bitcoin-pic-1.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n<\/span>What if there was digital gold?<\/span><\/h2>\n
<\/span>Will Bitcoin continue to rise in price and make me a lot of money?<\/span><\/h2>\n