Jimmy Song Talks Bitcoin (BTC Amsterdam Interview)

Jimmy Song is one of those names that needs no introduction in the Bitcoin landscape. He has been involved with the BTC ecosystem for almost a decade, from being a network developer and supporter to publishing several books on the subject, trying to educate the masses about the benefits of Bitcoin for both developers and retail investors.

CryptoPotato had the opportunity to speak with Song at the Bitcoin Conference 2023 in Amsterdam, where we talked about various BTC-related topics, such as Bitcoin, EEF, the future of the blockchain, and more, such as inflation and money printing.

The ‘Don't Care Camp' on Bitcoin ETFs

Whether the United States will finally have a place Bitcoin ETF was in the minds of many, such as Edward Snowden, who refused to accept the possible approval of a positive development, while others believe that such a product would help to legitimize cryptocurrency. Especially for institutional investors.

Speaking on the matter, Jimmy Song said he stands in the “I don't care camp.”

“A lot of people want it to mean something and it's just because it's kind of a promise for the long term. However, we've had futures ETFs in the US for a while now. Now we've had spot ETFs all over the world for a while.”

Some institutional investors have admitted to having an easier entry into the BTC ecosystem, but will have the option of shorting ETFs as the spot yield will be redeemable. Delivered in real bitcoins.

Commenting on another hot topic earlier this year – Bitcoin Ordinals – Song described them as “typical pump and dump”. He believes that such plans are usually carried out on altcoins such as DeFi summer and NFT craze – both of which were mainly based on Ethereum.

This time, it was on Bitcoin, which was the unexpected part. However, the author of five BTC books believes the hype around Ordinals is “already here” and adds, “I don't think it's going to do anything.”

Are we still in the Wild West?

In his first interview with us five years ago, Song said that he wore the famous cowboy hat to show that the Bitcoin industry is in the Wild West era because of the rules and any real adoption. Asked if he saw any progress in the case five years later, Song, still wearing a cowboy hat, said:

“I'd say we still have, but maybe a little later in the Wild West days, when you had those kinds of bounties and things. I think in the last five years, we've seen more scams and no scams than Sam Bankman-Fried is on trial now. So some of the wild animals, especially By the authorities charged by the SBF, but generally more regulation is being corrected.

When it comes to Bitcoin in particular, Song said, “I see a lot of regulators who recognize that it's very different from everything else.”

Separately, Song said five years ago that he believes more people will seek “liberty” assets like Bitcoin in the next 15 years, which will steepen BTC's adoption curve. With governments taking advantage of the Covid-19 pandemic to implement more controls on the global population and the imminent launch of CBDCs, we asked Song if he still has the same prediction for Bitcoin's future.

At the time of the epidemic, and especially when the vaccines were introduced, most people simply admitted that they were “given.” Controversial results and reports since then are making people wonder if they will take the same steps as they did a few years ago when everything was new to us.

As such, Song believes that many people want options and better education before making such a big decision. According to the CDC, many will comply once it's fully launched, but a large number of the public has become more skeptical. This is exemplified by the Canadian truckers, the farmer protests in a few European countries and other similar incidents.

The Prime Minister added that the process of people looking for alternatives and becoming more independent-minded is a long-term process.

“So maybe not 10 or 20 years from now, but 50 years from now, I think you're going to see a more liberal-minded population.

Fiat ruins everything

In an attempt to combat the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, governments around the world have locked down almost everything – from small and large businesses to people in their homes. In some countries, this is for weeks, in others – months and years.

To ease some of the financial pressure, authorities, especially in the West, decided to print tons of money and distribute it to their people. Whether that was successful or not is difficult to determine, but the impact on the global economy can be seen as global inflation rises. Of course, some governments are trying to blame it on the Ukraine-Russia war or something else.

In his fifth and final book focusing on the benefits of Bitcoin, Song weighed in on the matter, which is evident in the title – Fiat Disrupts.

He asserts that it is aimed at a different audience than his previous books – this one is “squared” for Bitcoiners – “to help people who already own Bitcoin and understand how bad fiat corruption is and to rally against it.” Soldiers little. This is a song, a way for us to understand what kind of scams you are getting away with in Bitcoin.

Image provided by YouTube