Decentralized consensus technology will reach the mainstream when products are built that both empower consumers to take control of their own data and also offer users great UXs.
Despite popular belief, Bitcoin is a bad medium of exchange for people that value financial privacy because of the transparent ledger that reveals an address, timestamp, and amount for every transaction on the network.
The crypto market has set the bar shockingly low for entrepreneurs to raise money, and this is dangerous for everyone involved.
Blockchain assets derive value from their usefulness. Bitcoin has value because people value the payment network. BTC is required to use the network, so people demand it. If Bitcoin continues to be useful, it will continue to have value.
There needs to be some standards around launching an ICO and investing in ICOs in the space, and I caution all to tread carefully until those standards emerge.
Ethereum exists because it enables developers to write smart contracts better than Bitcoin in the near-term. Zcash will exist because it will attempt to do privacy better than Bitcoin in the near-term, and the token gives you access to the anonymity protocol.
Cryptoeconomics is so fascinating to study because it's a combination of technology, economics, and psychology.
While it's not obvious to people now, in the long-run, the permissionless innovation that Bitcoin enables will ultimately improve the lives of billions of people.
