The Bitcoin Standard Podcast

51. The Global Bond Market and Bitcoin with Greg Foss Apr 28, 2021

Show notes

Experienced high-yield credit trader Greg Foss joins Saifedean Ammous for a discussion on why bond investors should own Bitcoin. They talk about why Bitcoin represents insurance against sovereign debt defaults, how Greg’s values Bitcoin using data from the Credit Default Swap markets, and why those same markets suggest that Canada’s official credit rating is too high.

Greg makes reference to:

This table showing the implied default risk of different countries based on CDC markets: http://www.worldgovernmentbonds.com/sovereign-cds/
The website that first allowed Greg to appreciate the beauty of Bitcoin from an engineering perspective: www.tradeblock.com
A research paper in which Greg outlines the full case for bond investors holding Bitcoin, including a description of his Bitcoin valuation model: https://rockstarinnercircle.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Why-Every-Fixed-Income-Investor-Needs-To-Consider-Bitcoin-As-Portfolio-Insurance.pdf

Enjoyed this episode? You can take part in podcast seminars, access Saifedean’s courses and read chapters of his forthcoming books by becoming a Saifedean.com member. Find out more here.

THE BITCOIN STANDARD TOOLKIT/SPONSORS

50. Precautionary principle & mass hysteria Apr 22, 2021

Show notes

We compare the precautionary principle approach of obsessing over avoiding one negative outcome to the economic way of thinking, which entails examining the seen and unseen consequences of each action, and is a much more sane, safe, and intelligent way of approaching complex issues. We examine two contemporary episodes of global mass hysteria to see how dangerously reckless and counterproductive using the precautionary principle is.

Enjoyed this episode? You can take part in podcast seminars, access Saifedean’s courses and read chapters of his forthcoming books by becoming a Saifedean.com member. Find out more here.

THE BITCOIN STANDARD TOOLKIT/SPONSORS

49. Can electric cars save the planet? Apr 19, 2021

Show notes

We discuss the economics of electric cars, and what the heavy subsidies they receive tell us about their future potential. Will they save earth from CO2 emissions? Is eliminating emissions possible? Is it even desirable?

Enjoyed this episode? You can take part in podcast seminars, access Saifedean’s courses and read chapters of his forthcoming books by becoming a Saifedean.com member. Find out more here.

THE BITCOIN STANDARD TOOLKIT/SPONSORS

48. The oportunity cost of fiat Apr 16, 2021

Show notes

In this seminar, we apply the economic way of thinking to figure out the opportunity cost of a century of fiat money. How would the world look like if it had hard money over the past century? What would be the impacts on capital accumulation, international trade, poverty alleviation?

Enjoyed this episode? You can take part in podcast seminars, access Saifedean’s courses and read chapters of his forthcoming books by becoming a Saifedean.com member. Find out more here.

THE BITCOIN STANDARD TOOLKIT/SPONSORS

47. Fiat food Apr 13, 2021

Show notes

In this episode we discuss the link between fiat money and fiat food, based on the latest chapter from The Fiat Standard, available to subscribers on saifedean.com. We discuss: fiat's encouragement of high time preference thinking causing soil depletion and bad food choices; why fiat governments heavily subsidize fiat foods to make inflation look better; and how a hard monetary standard incentivizes eating real food and regenerating soil.

Enjoyed this episode? You can take part in podcast seminars, access Saifedean’s courses and read chapters of his forthcoming books by becoming a Saifedean.com member. Find out more here.
Visit saifedean.com/meat to find out more about Saifedean’s experience following the carnivore diet.

Guest Episode on Tom Woods Show: Bitcoin, Present and Future Apr 11, 2021

Show notes

I joined Tom Woods to discuss current trends in Bitcoin, whether it’s in a “bubble,” what its advantages are, what the future may hold, and why all of this should matter to libertarians.

THE BITCOIN STANDARD TOOLKIT

The Bitcoin Standard Toolkit is a selection of the Bitcoin services I recommend to readers and learners on saifedean.com, as they upgrade from The Fiat Standard to The Bitcoin Standard.

NYDIG

NYDIG is a leading full-service financial services firm dedicated to Bitcoin, applying institutional wisdom and ingenuity to help clients access the unrealized potential of this emerging asset class. NYDIG offers the full suite of financial solutions needed for financial institutions to access Bitcoin, from custody, execution, financing, treasury solutions, integration partnerships, and more.

Check their website here: https://nydig.com/

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Cyphersafe

To secure your bitcoins, it is important to keep your seedphrase backed up safely, and for that, I highly recommend using the CypherWheel seed storage device, a gorgeous and brilliant sturdy piece of low time preference engineering from a fourth-generation machine shop in Maine.

Check their website here: https://cyphersafe.io/

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OKCoin

Whenever someone asks me how to invest in Bitcoin, my advice is to accumulate bitcoins periodically for the long run, or dollar-cost averaging. When you buy every day, week, or month, you play bitcoin’s volatility to your advantage. In the long run, this strategy will outperform every other bitcoin investment strategy, except for dumb luck, and lying about timing the market. For dollar-cost averaging, I strongly recommend OKCoin, the exchange with the lowest fees for recurring purchases worldwide. OKCoin is also the bitcoin exchange accessible in the most countries around the world.

Check their website here: https://okcoin.com/

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Nodl

I believe it is really important to run a node, but I don’t recommend running it on your work or personal computer, as it can compromise the performance of your computer and, more importantly, the security and privacy of your bitcoin node. A far better solution is to buy a dedicated hardware node, and for that, I highly recommend Nodl.

Check their website here: https://www.nodl.it/

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Coldcard

My hardware wallet of choice is the Coldcard. I strongly recommend only conducing bitcoin trades on computers tha

46. Debate: are precious metals being demonetized? Apr 08, 2021

Show notes

Peter Young hosts a debate between Saifedean and gold investor Mark Valek on the monetary status of precious metals. Has bitcoin obsoleted gold as money? Is gold being demonetized? Do gold's uses in jewellery and industry help or hinder its monetary status?

Enjoyed this episode? You can take part in podcast seminars, access Saifedean’s courses and read chapters of his forthcoming books by becoming a Saifedean.com member. Find out more here.

THE BITCOIN STANDARD TOOLKIT/SPONSORS

45. Bitcoin's energy consumption Apr 05, 2021

Show notes

We discuss the economics of energy, based on the chapter on the topic in my Principles of Economics textbook, which is available to subscribers on saifedean.com. What is the economic rationale for consuming energy? How has energy use increased the value of human time, helped end slavery, and improved living standards? What does this teach us about bitcoin's energy consumption? What are the real costs of low-energy alternatives to bitcoin?

Enjoyed this episode? You can take part in podcast seminars, access Saifedean’s courses and read chapters of his forthcoming books by becoming a Saifedean.com member. Find out more here.

THE BITCOIN STANDARD TOOLKIT/SPONSORS

44. The economics of banning bitcoin Apr 02, 2021

Show notes

We look at the economic problems of cracking down on bitcoin, and how that's working out for governments trying it. What can we learn from prohibition of drugs & alcohol? Will India's recent ban on bitcoin be as big a historic mistake as staying on the silver standard in the nineteenth century?

Enjoyed this episode? You can take part in podcast seminars, access Saifedean’s courses and read chapters of his forthcoming books by becoming a Saifedean.com member. Find out more here.

THE BITCOIN STANDARD TOOLKIT/SPONSORS