Mark Cuban: Bitcoin’s ‘Almost Free And Few Want To Use It,’ What It Needs Is ‘Undeniable Utility’

Recently, Mark Cuban, the Dallas Mavericks billionaire owner strike another one on Bitcoin when he said there is “no chance” the world’s leading cryptocurrency can be used as a reliable currency.

However, it isn’t because of technical reasons but because,

“it's too difficult to use, too easy to hack, way too easy to lose, too hard to understand, too hard to assess a value.”

Cuban said, “too much work for people to know why BTC over everything else.”

He has been very vocal about what he thinks of Bitcoin and back in September also said he would rather buy bananas because at least he could eat them.

Cuban’s views about Bitcoin got the crypto community started with developer and Bitcoin advocate Jimmy Song taking to Twitter to share why Cuban is “still living in 2011.”

Looks like @mcuban is still living in 2011

too difficult to use – wallets make it easy, especially as SoV

too easy to hack, way too easy to lose – backups make it easy

too hard to understand – @LittleBitcoinBk makes it easy

too hard to assess a value – s2f makes it easy

— Jimmy Song (송재준) (@jimmysong) December 10, 2019

He argues that wallets have made Bitcoin easy to use while backups can help with easy to lose concern and to assess the value, we have now got stock-to-flow model, used by analyst PlanB to determine BTC value.

Don’t be like Gold People…

Bitcoin bull Preston Pysh also jumped in stating that Cuban is neglecting the ongoing macro economic scenario of systematic breakdown of fiat currency and the interest rates turning negative.

But isn’t the “gold standard advocates say pretty much the same thing”? Well, we have a 50,000% increment with us.

Also, “Good luck conducting near immediate clearance of payments between two nation-states with gold.”

But why would multiple-nation states even go for one single cryptocurrency as a mean of exchange, they won’t.

But Preston says while they will have their own domestic digital currencies, they will be “held accountable to the hardest, DECENTRALIZED token.” A token that offers the “securest” clearance of payments for sizable transactions.

However, Cuban argues that when “no price is too much” the $7 billion, the collective salary for miners to produce a block is an issue in itself along with quantum computing, legacy keys, AI and environmental issues.

$6.91 billion is a small price to pay to protect legacy interests. As are many other maneuvers And what about quantum computing and legacy keys and the cost of creating more advanced keys? What happens to settlement then ?

— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) December 11, 2019

Not to forget, “Countries have gone to war over less than trying to protect their control.”

And the amount of power and processing required in blockchain will be the vulnerabilities post-implementation.

You can’t Change my Mind…

Overall despite having just $549 worth of BTC which is purchased from the Mavs, Cuban isn’t convinced. As a matter of fact, his mind “will not be changed” by the technical discussions about fiat currency, Sharpe ratios, valuation projections, protocol comparison or academic discussions as they “rarely change hearts and minds of consumers.”

It’s the actual usage by consumers, “who choose BTC over the many other options.” He points out how Dallas Mavericks that started accepting Bitcoin in 2015 recorded only 5 transactions in total till last year.

Lots of people are trying to change my mind. My mind will be changed not by technical discussions about fiat currency, sharpe ratios, valuation projections, protocol comparisons , etc . It will be changed by actual usage by consumers, who choose BTC over the many other options

— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) December 12, 2019

Bitcoin currently is “almost free and few want to use it,” said Cuban adding,

“The percentage of consumers choosing it as a methodologically for payment or SOV is infinitesimal.”