The ongoing debate around Bitcoin’s value and legitimacy continues to generate significant attention across the crypto community. Ripple’s (CTO), David Schwartz, recently joined the conversation following an intriguing discussion at the Binance Blockchain Week in Dubai.
The debate reached a new level of intensity when Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao engaged in a public showdown with Bitcoin critic Peter Schiff, sparking a conversation about Bitcoin versus gold.
During the event, Zhao seized an opportunity to challenge Schiff’s criticism of Bitcoin by presenting a gold bar and asking Schiff to verify its authenticity. However, Schiff hesitated, stating he would need specialized tools to confirm the gold’s legitimacy.
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Zhao, in turn, highlighted the instantaneous verification process that Bitcoin transactions undergo, contrasting this with the difficulties associated with verifying gold in real-time.
This exchange led to a wider conversation within the crypto community about the viability of replicating Bitcoin. In response to an online query asking how long it would take to recreate Bitcoin, Schwartz offered his perspective. He pointed out the flaw in the question, questioning how something could both be “new” and “exactly the same.”
Schwartz also pondered the implications of replicating Bitcoin, explaining that the true value of Bitcoin is not just in its physical form but also in its fixed supply and blockchain verification.
Schwartz’s input directly addressed a common misconception in the crypto space—that Bitcoin could simply be replicated, much like any other digital asset. As Schwartz explained, the fixed supply of Bitcoin means there will only ever be 21 million coins in circulation.
Currently, about 19.96 million Bitcoin are in circulation, with just over one million left to be mined. This scarcity is a key factor in Bitcoin’s value proposition, ensuring its status as a unique digital asset.
The phrase “1 BTC = 1 BTC” remains a crucial reminder in the crypto world that the value of Bitcoin is tied to its fixed nature and scarcity, rather than fluctuations in fiat currencies. Unlike gold, which still faces challenges in verification, Bitcoin transactions are verified instantly on the blockchain.
The process of creating replicas of Bitcoin does not affect its value because its supply is capped, and the authenticity is assured by the blockchain technology that underpins it.
The debate between gold and Bitcoin has sparked fresh insights into the evolving nature of digital assets. As technology progresses, Bitcoin continues to stand out for its robust verification process and the inherent limitations of its supply.
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The post Ripple CTO Weighs In on the Bitcoin Debate: Can Bitcoin Be Replicated? appeared first on 36Crypto.

Legal experts are concerned that transforming ESMA into the “European SEC” may hinder the licensing of crypto and fintech in the region. The European Commission’s proposal to expand the powers of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) is raising concerns about the centralization of the bloc’s licensing regime, despite signaling deeper institutional ambitions for its capital markets structure.On Thursday, the Commission published a package proposing to “direct supervisory competences” for key pieces of market infrastructure, including crypto-asset service providers (CASPs), trading venues and central counterparties to ESMA, Cointelegraph reported.Concerningly, the ESMA’s jurisdiction would extend to both the supervision and licensing of all European crypto and financial technology (fintech) firms, potentially leading to slower licensing regimes and hindering startup development, according to Faustine Fleuret, head of public affairs at decentralized lending protocol Morpho.Read more

