Cryptocurrency: How Bitcoin and Digital Money are Challenging the Global Economic Order

Cryptocurrency: How Bitcoin and Digital Money are Challenging the Global Economic Order

by PaulVigna (Author), Michael J . Casey (Author)

Synopsis

Not so long ago the internet was a new and alien concept. Today, the world would collapse without it. Today, cryptocurrency is a new and little-used concept. Tomorrow, will the world collapse without it? We sit at the cusp of a revolution in global commerce, a shift that promises nothing less than to reshape the international economic and political order. At the heart of this revolution lies the groundbreaking technology of cryptocurrencies. With the advent of bitcoin in 2008 the term `cryptocurrency' crept into our lives. But whether bitcoin triumphs or fails, the technology it unleashed is here to stay and will only get stronger. It's cheaper, faster, easier, more democratic and safer than paper money and credit cards, and people - and governments - are catching on fast. Cryptocurrency is a vision of a radically different future. In examining the new and unstoppable revolution that is cryptocurrency it forces us to rethink our assumptions that underlie the world in its present form, to question what money is and how it functions in society, and to envisage how it could change our lives beyond recognition.

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More Information

Format: Paperback
Pages: 368
Publisher: Bodley Head
Published: 29 Jan 2015

ISBN 10: 1847923321
ISBN 13: 9781847923325
Book Overview: 1988 saw the birth of the internet. 2008 gave us bitcoin. Today, cybercurrencies are changing the world we live in.

Media Reviews
Admirably clear and judicious ... If the word `blockchain' makes you want to call a plumber, or you think Satoshi is some kind of raw fish, you need to read Cryptocurrency today. If you're already a bit-convert, you'll still learn a lot -- Niall Ferguson, author of The Ascent of Money
Invaluable ... a fascinating field guide to the phenomenon in which three of the most powerful forces shaping our world today meet - the reform of finance, technological innovation, and the rejection of traditional politics -- Felix Martin, author of Money: the Unauthorised Biography
Fascinating... Vigna and Casey are cautious, though enthusiastic guides to this strange new world... they know how to dig beneath the surface and they also know how to write. The book is full of fascinating stories, from the origins of money... to the Silk Road bust... Somewhere in this world of blockchains and cryptocurrencies lies the seed of the next online revolution- one that brings radical decentralization, autonomous organisations, a cull of brokers and fixers, a new constraint on government and fiat currencies, and a supercharge to the sharing economy * The Times *
Engaging, lucid, and thought-provoking ... I can think of no better guide to what the future holds -- Eswar Prasad, author of The Dollar Trap
Not only demystifies and explains bitcoin, but shows where it fits into the cultural zeitgeist and where it's pointed, and what that may mean for our financial system -- John Mauldin, New York Times bestselling author
Author Bio
PAUL VIGNA and MICHAEL CASEY are journalists at the Wall Street Journal. Michael Casey is a senior columnist covering global finance. Paul Vigna is a markets reporter, covering equities and the economy. Together they write the column `BitBeat' for the Wall Street Journal's MoneyBeat blog, a daily compendium of cryptocurrency news and analysis.