Bitcoin neutrality

Bitcoin is more widely talked about in the key of cryptocurrency and currency. However, less is known that bitcoin is not just a currency but a whole new network and protocol for moving information. A network that allows consensus to be reached between two parties without a third party. The only rules of the network are pure mathematics. Andreas Antonopoulos says that the neutrality of bitcoin means that the system does not care who the sender is, who the recipient is and what the content is. It is simply a platform that passes information from sender to recipient. Like a silly electric cable. And everyone has access and the freedom to use the system, regardless of location, age or time. Only internet is required. No one’s permission required. By comparison to the Internet, Andreas points out that bitcoin only as a currency is like e-mail in the early days of the Internet. He also talks about comparing bitcoin with other currencies, led by the dollar, and the suitability of the currency for religions.

He also talks about how “the richest country in the world” in the United States is 60 million. a person without any kind of identification, without a social number, without a bank account. And only 1 billion people in the world have any access to banks, credit cards and other electronic money services at all. The remaining 6+ billion use either cash or the subsistence economy. Bitcoin is primarily an opportunity for all those six billion. Therefore, the introduction of bitcoin must be organized in such a way that it is as smooth as possible, even in developing countries with poor infrastructure. Some solutions already exist: PaperWallet, physical tokens, smartphones, and even landlines. Bitcoin payments via SMS via the M-slot also work with landlines. Already 2 billion people worldwide have mobile phones. And that number is growing very fast.

Bitcoin neutrality is threatened by various regulations and various blacklists, trustlists and other such restrictions. That would be a ruin for bitcoin as it changes the greatest value and basic concept of this system. The Bitcoin system is based on a single rule – anyone can verify transfer information by entering a specific value from anywhere in the world. In other words, in the case of bitcoin currency, the input is the secret key of the wallet, which gives access to the information (currency) assigned to the wallet in the network. And this information is available to anyone who has that particular secret key.

Andreas M. Antonopoulos is a security expert and bitcoin fan with many experiences and degrees. Has worked in the field of IT security for over 20 years, has witnessed the development of the Internet and is now gaining momentum in the world of bitcoin.

See also the presentation – the first 23 minutes, the rest of the question round.