What is it that keeps our society a cohesive, integrated unit? Is it our shared language, culture, and values? Or is it ultimately the money we use?
Despite mixing our languages, cultures, and values together over the past few centuries, we can observe that society is still functioning relatively well. Although sometimes we cannot relate or communicate with one another, money always acts as the base layer of trust, and facilitates our transactions.
But what happens when the pillars of our debt-based money system start to erode? We of course see inflation (the value of fiat currency dropping relative to other assets), and ultimately the breakdown of confidence that once held our society together.
Right now it's still possible to sell your crypto for dollars, yen, euros, etc. in order to participate in society. But what will happen to our world when crypto reaches mass adoption, and fiat currency has gone the way of the dinosaur?
When that happens, the dollars that you once purchased with crypto will no longer have any value. Instead, the value will lie in the cryptocurrencies themselves, and likely the NFTs that represent real world assets. That said, value is always subjective depending on the observer.
Crypto Tribes
In the cryptocurrency world we have countless tribes. For example, we have Bitcoin maxis, Ethereum maxis, and even Memecoin maxies. The tribesmen of each community are building strong (often virtual) bonds with each other, forming what could be considered a new trust layer.
As crypto adoption continues to accelerate, the number of tribes will surely increase until we reach a saturation point, and everyone has all settled into their new communities.
Imagine the turmoil the world would have to go through as fiat currency is phased out and cryptocurrencies are established as the new money. A new form of "currency war" will likely emerge, as different tribes battle for dominance in both the virtual and real world.
When the dust finally settles, there will likely be hundreds, if not thousands, of crypto tribes scattered around the world. Some will have adopted Bitcoin, others will have integrated Ethereum, etc, etc, etc. The question is, will these differing tribes be willing to accept the cryptocurrency of a rival tribe?
Cross-Tribe Settlement
Although we see an increasing number of countries, states, and corporations embracing Bitcoin, other cryptocurrencies are likely to be integrated in smaller areas. For example, Saint Kitts has floated the idea of making Bitcoin Cash legal tender in their small island nation. Meanwhile, Hive and its HBD are slowly gaining ground in Venezuela.
Here in El Salvador, Bitcoin has been adopted as another form of legal tender, in addition to the dollar. For now, the vast majority of the population still uses the dollar to transact. That said, businesses are increasingly starting to accept Bitcoin as the price rises, and it becomes more "normal".
Perhaps services like THORchain, Maya Protocol, Chainflip, and others will help us in this respect. By using these cross-chain decentralized exchanges, a traveler from one tribal area would be able to easily convert his coins into a cryptocurrency that is accepted in the physical region he finds himself in.
Until next time...
Perhaps I'm getting ahead of myself here, as the world still revolves around the dollar, euro, yen, and yuan. But if we keenly observe the trend, it's obvious that crypto will continue to grow, and fiat will continue to weaken, and this will have significant impacts on our society.
If you learned something new from this article, be sure to check out my other posts on crypto and finance here on the HIVE blockchain. You can also follow me on InLeo for more frequent updates.