Insight - This bitcoin chaos will blow up your cyberpunk utopia

New attraction: A pedestrian passes a bitcoin ATM kiosk in Barcelona, Spain. The mania and panic that have gripped decentralised cryptocurrencies are heightening the attraction of their coming rivals: digital cash, issued by central banks. — Bloomberg

BITCOIN’S wild gyrations in 2021 have made sure of one thing: The future of money will be electronic, but it won’t remotely resemble a cyberpunk utopia. People’s power will bow to sovereigns’ might.

The mania and panic that have gripped decentralised cryptocurrencies are heightening the attraction of their coming rivals: digital cash, issued by central banks. These tokens will be staid, centralised and state-controlled. That’s exactly what users will want in an Internet of Things world where machines need to settle claims with one another all the time, instantaneously, but without contributing to global warming.