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Comment by Avalaxy | Hacker News Reader

I agree that there is no intrinsic value here, but it's a " ponzi scheme" that has been going on for 12 years now, and there are no signs of this stopping. I think we can safely stop calling it a ponzi scheme. Otherwise, by the same logic, other assets would also have to be labelled a ponzi scheme.

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Ponzi schemes can go on for much longer than 12 years. Madoff said that he began the Ponzi scheme in the early 1990s, but federal investigators believe that the fraud began as early as the mid-1980s[18] and may have begun as far back as the 1970s.. He was caught by confession in 2008.

Over approx. 20 years, Lewis collected around $311 million U.S. dollars from investors. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Paul_Lewis_Jr%2E

In another ~20 years we can stop calling Bitcoin a Ponzi Scheme, but speculative investment can fuel exponential growth for much longer than you might think.

> it's a " ponzi scheme" that has been going on for 12 years now, and there are no signs of this stopping. I think we can safely stop calling it a ponzi scheme

Not saying that calling Bitcoin a Ponzi scheme is particularly insightful, but if I believe Wikipedia, Madoff's Ponzi scheme had been going on for more than that when it was brought to a halt.

To describe Bitcoin as a ponzi, you must apply a very loose definition, which will necessarily be applicable to other assets as well. More on this: https://www.swanbitcoin.com/why-bitcoin-is-not-a-ponzi-schem...

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