Episode 82 – Bitcoin and Cryptocurrencies with Mitchell Callahan

In today's episode, we welcome back Mitchell McCallahan to the show. Jean previously discussed Bitcoin with Mitchell on episode 28 back in September last year, so do check that episode out especially if you're new to Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. In today's episode, we discuss the evolution of Bitcoin over the past year, as well as some common questions and doubts that people have when they start looking at cryptocurrencies as an asset class.

We talk about the two different types of blockchain forks - hard forks and soft forks. We touch on the forks we've had in Bitcoin this past year as well as the upcoming hard fork that has just been cancelled as I write up these shownotes (we didn't know that while recording).

We also discuss whether one should pay attention to other cryptos apart from Bitcoin, and if so, why.

Mitchell explains how whales can influence the price of cryptocurrencies with some tricks. This price manipulation is also done by the exchanges with fake orders.

We also discuss why nations creating their own cryptocurrencies does not solve the same problem that Bitcoin aims to solve.

Another interesting topic that Mitchell tells us about is how to make big purchases of Bitcoin. You basically use brokers that will give you a better price compared to buying them off an exchange. You can find these brokers on localbitcoin or from your local meetup groups (if you live in a big city with excellent crypto penetration).

We also touch on some questions from the audience, such as the concern about mining's electricity consumption, whether Bitcoin will always trump other alt coins, whether Bitcoin is in a bubble or not, which altcoins have any actual utility, and how to store your Bitcoin.

Useful links

* Jean's collection of best cryptocurrency resources

* Should you buy Bitcoin?

* Vietnamese central bank bans cryptos

* UAE governor warns against cryptos as a medium of payment

* Are cryptocurrencies a fraud and a scam?

* Bitcoin mining and electricity consumption

* Why Bitcoin is different from other cryptos