Speaking at the Bloomberg Invest Asia conference this afternoon, early Bitcoin pioneer Roger Ver stood his ground and argued why cryptocurrencies are here to stay. In addition to praising cryptocurrency as a viable and unprecedented payment system, Ver elaborated on his bullish outlook for Bitcoin Cash (BCH), stating that the upcoming hard fork will help it become more useful in commerce and ultimately push adoption forward.
Crypto still evolving
Participating in a panel titled The Future for Bitcoin and Cryptocurrencies, Ver adamantly defended the value and application of cryptocurrencies. Affirming that cryptocurrency is clearly still in its infancy, he spoke about crypto’s potential to evolve into something even bigger in the next few years. Moreover, he emphasized most people fail to understand that Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies do not just act as currencies but also function as payment networks, which is in itself an innovative and game changing concept:
“Even if you aren’t bullish on Bitcoin as a currency itself, it is undeniable that it is an absolutely amazing payment network because it allows you to transmit any amount of value with anyone anywhere in the world, instantly, basically for free.”
According to Ver, the fact that crypto can currently be used to pay for movie tickets, hotel rooms, and even salaries shows how crypto is growing and will continue to do so.
The case for Bitcoin Cash
In a separate interview, Ver was asked whether he still held any Bitcoin or had sold it all off. While he replied that he did still possess “some Bitcoin core,” Ver turned his focus to explaining why he considers Bitcoin Cash a more favorable investment:
“Today I’m more Bullish about Bitcoin Cash than I was about Bitcoin Core before it split to the two because it’s actually getting adoption all over the world. More and more merchants are accepting it, it’s easier to use.”
Bitcoin Cash saw a price surge to as high as $1,500 back in February when bitcoin payment service provider BitPay announced it would integrate transactions in BCH. At the time of writing, BCH is trading at $651.98, according to data from Coinrate.com.
Cryptocurrency market data by CoinRate.Com
Upcoming Hard Fork
Bitcoin Cash’s hard fork is scheduled for May 15, and is set to introduce “Ethereum-like characteristics.” Specifically, the network upgrade will bring new operation codes and color coin technology that will essentially allow for basic smart contracts on the Bitcoin Cash network. Perhaps the most significant change is the increase of the block size to a maximum of 32 MB, which is expected to result in faster transaction speeds.
If the network upgrade is implemented smoothly, it could lead to more merchants incorporating BCH as a payment option. The success of Bitcoin Cash’s hard fork would not only bring good news for investors, but would result in strides for cryptocurrency as a whole.
