The Stealth War in New Finance

Abraham George Macro View

There is a very big silent war going on in the field of money. The biggest financial development of the century will be the adoption of digital currency which will impact all walks of life. There are many actors, beneficiaries and also losers to this story. While each country like China and India will come out with their own methods that will eventually align with cross border transactions, I am particularly interested in what will happen in the US.

On one side are governments, bureaucrats, fiat currencies and the global banking complex - nestled in Capitol Hill, Washington and in the gleaming skyscrapers in Manhattan, NY. On the other side are hordes of young, scrawny companies backed by brilliant cryptographers, maverick coders with complex programming and dizzying security protocols. These young men and women are mostly libertarian with an anti- establishment / anarchist fervor.

While these suited guys in Washington, New York, London, Frankfurt and Tokyo will do everything in their power to retain control of traditional money, they are being challenged by the free thinking, surfing beach boys and girls who are convinced the governments and regulators will continue to take us in the wrong direction.

So it is a meeting of minds. The governments are willing to listen and they also know change is inevitable. But it is also a fight and this will bring big changes in all other areas of life. That will include the fate of developing economies, access to financial services, the way we measure inflation, terrorism, all forms of economic crime from insider trading to drug dealing, the ability of governments to conduct surveillance on its citizens, financial transactions, tax collection, you name it.

So far, Bitcoin has made big news in the international financial markets. Bitcoin and its crypto peers have gone on to command a market cap of 2.4 trillion dollars a couple of weeks back. 90% or more of the global population are ignorant about it especially how these cryptocurrencies will impact their lives. Bitcoin undoubtedly had a massive head start and has already developed significant brand equity. But among the altcoins, there are developers who believe that the weakness in Bitcoin’s weaknesses or perceived shortcomings are fatal and unfixable.

In my next report, I will discuss about some of the companies that could realistically challenge Bitcoin’s hegemony. The story unfolds in a manner that would outdo Hollywood thriller screenplays. Big money, sex, fraud, genius, betrayal, international intrigue and government raids. It’s a tour-de-force guaranteed!

Abraham George is a seasoned investment manager with more than 40 years of experience in trading & investment and portfolio management spanning diverse environments like banks (HSBC, ADCB), sovereign wealth fund (ADIA), a royal family office and a hedge fund.