Now that the SEC has officially gone after Coinbase, it's clear that it wants to drive the crypto industry out of the US. 🚫🇺🇸 This is definitely bad, but it has some silver linings as well. Let's go over 5 reasons this is good, and 5 why it's bad. 🧐
BAD #1: Cuts off one of the largest economies
The US is a huge global economy with hundreds of millions of people. Cutting them off from one of the greatest tech and financial innovations hurts them, and hurts the industry as a whole.
BAD #2: Crushes innovation
Lots of innovative projects are US-based, and can get crushed by enforcement. LBRY was one of the best decentralized content protocols out there, but the SEC lawsuit absolutely destroyed them. 😭
BAD #3: Helps a CBDC
Pushing out decentralized crypto makes it easier to implement a central bank digital currency and gain a chilling amount of control over the population. This is even worse in the US, the home of the global reserve currency. 😱
BAD #4: Incentivizes "safe" compliance
To stay out of the SEC's crosshairs, companies will be afraid to innovate by adopting crypto, NFTs, and other cutting-edge innovations. The crypto that does end up coming out of the US won't be exciting or revolutionary!
BAD #5: Other countries may follow suit
The US setting a bad example of regulatory overreach with crypto could cause its allies to take notes, spreading the crackdown far beyond US borders. Domino effect of major countries restricting crypto!
GOOD #1: Reduces US hegemony
Crypto is a killer innovation, and will become the backbone of the global economy. With the dollar, the US already has way too much power. Letting the rest of the world get a head start is actually good for decentralizing the global economy.
GOOD #2: Pushes nullification
Many US states are very unhappy that the Feds are messing with their most productive industries! 😡 Similar to cannabis, states may start contradicting the Feds, nullifying them and weakening the central government's power.
GOOD #3: Pushes DEXes
The DEX world, especially cross-chain like THORCHain/Maya Protocol, needs a big push to both self-decentralize and take market share from the CEX world. This is as good a push in that direction as any!
GOOD #4: Brings back p2p cash
Bitcoin took off as a peer-to-peer electronic cash system. But when crypto became easier to hodl and sell for fiat, many lost their way. Now it'll be easier to get crypto by taking it as payment, and easier to offramp through spending 💵
GOOD #5: Kills centralization
Crypto was supposed to resist state-level actors. Now that we have this threat, it's time to find out who's actually decentralized and who's LARPing. Only the strong survive!😤
Overall this is bad for crypto, but I'm optimistic regardless. I've seen too much innovation over my decade in crypto to believe it's just going to get crushed so easily, when things like filesharing and cannabis didn't. Stay strong crypto people! 💪