Bitcoin, as we all know, is a decentralized cryptocurrency which means that there is no central governing authority regulating the flow of money. However, several incidents have come to light which are pushing the digital currency into the hands of regulators; the case of Bitcoin being used to fund terrorist organizations such as ISIS and in money laundering has raised strong eyebrows across the globe. Knowing this, the national monetary authorities are carefully weighing the pros and cons of the digital currency, in an attempt to limit the funding of illegal operations.
But Bitcoin has, until now, thrived on deregulation. So, if Bitcoin does get regulated, would it lose its charm? Users have always felt satisfied knowing that they can transact with each other at extremely low costs, in just seconds. So, if regulations are imposed, would the process become longer and will the costs escalate? Also, would the users, in effect, be relinquishing their ownership of funds, when accepting governance? These are some really strong questions which have been concerning the Bitcoin community. So, let us look at some answers to these questions.
Firstly, the main purpose of the regulators is to track the flow of money and not hampering the process and raising the costs. And tracking is still being done, although very remotely. Secondly, central banks have been devaluing the consumers’ dollars by their massive money printing programs. However, in Bitcoin, no such scenario can be foreseen as the digital currency is mined on a competitive, merit basis and not on the whims and fancies of the central banks. This rules out the ownership issue. Thirdly, with central authorities backing the cryptocurrency, more businesses and consumers will find it comforting to accept it as a payment method.
Conclusively, we can say that the concerns of the Bitcoin users are unwarranted and the regulation will, in fact, be more useful to the financial and the social landscapes.
