Thread by @JackNiewold

Decentralization is subjective.

That makes it an ineffective narrative to onboard users to crypto.

Here's a thread on how we can actually help people understand the insane value of crypto networks.

(or the story of how I finally got my dad to pick up some $ETH)

thread👇

Let's start with the most basic definition of Bitcoin:

Cryptocurrencies are:

• decentralized digital currency
• without a central bank or single administrator
• that can be sent on peer-to-peer networks without the need for intermediaries

Decentralization convinces the libertarian crowd and the privacy crowd but not the mainstream.

'Without a central bank' is attractive to the gold bugs.

But peer-to-peer? That often gets overshadowed.

When we should really be shouting peer-to-peer from the rooftops!

It is the characteristic of crypto that's simplest to understand, and perhaps the one that adds the most value to crypto ecosystems.

Why?

Our current systems rely on intermediaries to function--literally almost all of them, unless you're directly bartering with someone.

And those intermediaries reduce friction but they take a big cut. The financial industry alone is worth over $20 trillion!

But all of that value is derived from peer to peer activity. Nearly all value created in economies, fundamentally, is the exchange of goods and services between peers.

That's the base layer on which EVERYTHING else is built.

And those intermediaries are extractive, trying to suck out profit from these peer-to-peer transactions.

But what if we owned the means of exchange? Or even better, what if it was distributed, decentralized, and peer-to-peer.

Maybe we would start with the financial system?

That's crypto.

And if we can create the financial systems from scratch, interacting without intermediaries, well wouldn't those systems be worth at least $20 trillion dollars?

All the value that was once sucked up now becomes DISTRIBUTED thanks to peer-to-peer networks.

And Bitcoin, L1s, and altcoins are the networks we use to exchange without intermediaries.

And we can own these networks, and as they become worth more to people, the value of our ownership in these networks increases as well.

And that's why specific cryptos are valuable, because they replace those intermediaries.

Instead of extracting value to a central entity, the value is now distributed amongst the owners of the network.

So the next time someone asks you why blockchain is important, or why crypto is valuable, don't start with abstract concepts like 'decentralization.'

Talk about how peer-to-peer systems allow us to reclaim the value that intermediaries have extracted for thousands of years.

THAT'S why crypto is important and valuable.

That's why decentralized protocols built on decentralized networks are important and valuable.

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https://twitter.com/JackNiewold/status/1466163384521408514?s=20