On September 18, 2024, the fascinating vernissage took place at SHED Zug, organized by Schweizer Monat, a medium for “makers and thinkers.” The main speaker of the evening was Dr. Saifedean Ammous, a renowned economist and book author, who explained the challenges Bitcoin poses for today's FIAT financial system to around 100 participants.
The event began with an introduction by Rahim Taghizadegan, an Austrian-Iranian economist and director of the Scholarium in Zug. He emphasized the similarities between him and Dr. Ammous, in particular their oriental roots and their connection to Austrian School of Economics.
Ronnie Gröb, editor-in-chief of Schweizer Monat, moderated the subsequent interview and opened with a concise tweet from Dr. Ammous: “Hard money makes for good times, and good times make easy money; easy money makes for hard times, and hard times make for hard money. #Bitcoin”
Dr. Ammous emphasized that the future financial crisis is less threatening for Bitcoin investors. He pointed out the problem of government bonds and explained how Bitcoin could protect both private investors and companies from a potential crash. He is particularly critical of the potential division between labor and supply chain in impending hyperinflation.
His forecast: The value of FIAT money will fall, while demand and the price of Bitcoin will rise. Dr. Ammous also emphasized the positive impact of”hard money“on motivation to save and act sustainably.
Interestingly enough, Dr. Ammous also shared personal experiences. Since his discovery of Bitcoin in 2010, his life has changed for the better - he is now living healthier and has started a family. He attributes this positive development to Bitcoin and a confident vision of the future.
In a global context, Dr. Ammous explained how abandoning the gold standard since the First World War had led to increased money production. This had led to political divisions in many countries, although Switzerland still had an advantage due to its subsequent departure from the gold standard (1936).
The subsequent Q&A session offered further exciting insights:
Dr. Ammous sees Bitcoin as potentially superior, but stresses that a significant turnaround will only occur with massive investments. Bitcoin currently represents less than 10% of all gold, only when millions of dollars go into Bitcoin will there be a significant turnaround. The clearance of gold depends on the ECB. Switching to Bitcoin takes an average of 3 years for real gold bugs.
He recommends independent learning and free online courses over expensive traditional courses, as most universities are paid by the government to convince that the ECB is good
He sees the involvement of companies like Blackrock in Bitcoin ETFs as positive for Bitcoin's development. As long as asset managers cannot simply produce Bitcoin the way the ECB prints money, there is no risk. As a result, the cash balance of Bitcoin increases, the more people go into Bitcoin, the harder the money gets and the higher the value of the Bitcoin rises
Dr. Ammous recognizes the potential of stablecoins like Tether, particularly in countries with unstable currencies, although he was skeptical at first and could not imagine governments allowing a centralized currency. Today, Tether holds $120 bn of US bonds, i.e. more than Germany. Tether makes 57 million USD in profit per worker, is very profitable and is in competition with the Turkish Central Bank, which disempowers the Turks and finances the Turkish government.
He highlights Bitcoin's resilience to potential power outages. Alternatives include solar panels, wind turbines or electricity generators. Important: Bitcoin will continue to exist even after a week of power failure, whereas fiat money and transfers could disappear or get stuck.
He regrets that Taleb never read his book “The Bitcoin Standard” and points to Lyn Alden's analysis of X, which refuted Nassim's claim.
Bitcoin is neutral and it doesn't matter who buys it, whether it is Blackrock or the government, but it is an advantage for both the government and a company to have Bitcoin as an asset in the cash book. Michael Saylor has already been able to successfully prove this with MicroStrategy.
Bitcoin is not deflationary per se; if you produce and invest, that is also good for Bitcoin. Even if the ECB disappears, Bitcoin will continue to exist and it will rise. Production costs of companies, on the other hand, are falling, and so are potentially sales prices.
The evening ended with an aperitif, during which the participants had the opportunity to exchange ideas further and receive their signed books. In summary, this event offered deep insights into the future of the financial system and the role that Bitcoin could play in it. Dr. Ammous's presentation gave participants plenty of food for thought about the future of money and the global economy.
Verena is a convinced Bitcoiner, born in Munich, lived in the USA for 2 years and in Paris for 17 years and has a total of 20 years of professional experience in marketing and sales of software and financial companies. For a year now, Verena has also been actively involved in Bitcoin Space, organizing workshops in Munich, helping the start-up “Opago”, retailers with orange pills and taking part in various conferences. In the future, Verena would like to focus on the institutional market and work in the area of Bitcoin education.
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Finally, here is a little easter egg for our readers: One of Mr. Ammous' first lectures in German-speaking countries, during which he presented his world bestseller at the time, organized by Bitcoin Austria: Saifedean Ammous: The Bitcoin Standard - book presentation in Vienna, Austria
Disclaimer: The views and information expressed in the guest contributions should not be interpreted as financial advice. It is important to note that Coinfinity does not necessarily represent the same positions and views as in the content provided here.
