Banking Bitcoin with Allen Farrington & Eric Yakes

“We need to build a system that is not going to create any sort of systemic centralisation and the incentives are aligned so that doesn’t happen, that can defend us against fiat money, now the question of whether or not fractional reserve money still emerges in that system is another debate.”— Eric YakesAllen Farrington is the co-author of ‘Bitcoin Is Venice’ and Eric Yakes is the author of ‘The 7th Property’. In this interview, we do a deep dive into the future of the Bitcoin-centric financial system, focusing on self-sovereignty, scalability, and the future of banking. We also explore the potential of Bitcoin to serve as a superior form of money addressing issues of custody and sovereignty, and the separation of money from state influence. - - - - The development of Bitcoin’s ecosystem is a balancing act: making Bitcoin scale whilst ensuring it maintains its offer as a medium for self-sovereignty. In this podcast, we discuss the current trade offs being debated within the community, focusing on the impact of high transaction costs, whether the Lightning Network equates to true self-sovereignty, a growing concern that UTXO ownership might become a privilege, and the role of covenants. The underlying issue is the potential for the community to develop a neutral financial system directed by market participants. We discuss the potential for Bitcoin to serve as a better form of money, particularly in terms of its scarcity, its speed and cost of movement benefits, and the potential for shared custody models. We address the risks and trade-offs associated with moving into a Bitcoin-centric financial system, particularly in terms of custody and sovereignty.Eric and Alan explore the idea of reducing information asymmetry and constraints within economies, and the implications for fractional reserve systems. They emphasize the importance of creating systems that increase information transparency and reduce the likelihood of fraudulent activities. The guests also discuss the proposal for “Ark”, its prospective role in a Bitcoin financial system and its potential to address Lightning liquidity issues. As we move forward, it's clear that the Bitcoin ecosystem is at a crossroads, with emerging technologies offering both solutions and new challenges. The path to a Bitcoin-centric financial system is fraught with technical, economic, and philosophical questions that require our collective attention and ingenuity. This podcast is a chance to hear how two of the community’s leading thinkers are collaborating to consider these complex issues.- - - - This episode’s sponsors:Iris Energy - Bitcoin Mining. Done Sustainably Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is hereLedger - State of the art Bitcoin hardware walletWasabi Wallet - Privacy by defaultUnchained - Secure your bitcoin with confidenceBitcoin Atlantis - A Bitcoin conference in the AtlanticSwan Bitcoin - Invest in Bitcoin with Swan-----WBD756 - Show Notes-----If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:Become a Patron and get access to shows early or help contributeMake a tip:Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2SQR Codes: BitcoinIf you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank youSubscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer | TuneIn | RSS FeedLeave a review on iTunesShare the show and episodes with your friends and familySubscribe to the newsletter on my websiteFollow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium | YouTubeIf you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.