Author: Alex Kotenko 2014-06-16 18:02:47
Published on: 2014-06-16T18:02:47+00:00
In an email to Lawrence Nahum in 2014, Alex Kotenko expressed concerns about the possible centralization of Trusted Third Parties (TTPs) in Bitcoin transactions, warning that it could lead to a "VISA world" scenario. Kotenko argued that economies of scale would make centralization inevitable, as newcomers would find it expensive to enter the market. He also noted that once Bitcoin is regulated like money, monopolies would likely restrict competition to maintain their dominance. According to Kotenko, the "instant providers list" was susceptible to regulatory influence and could become a "timebomb under Bitcoin." Therefore, he urged the community to find a way to solve the double-spend issue without TTP involvement to prevent the experiment from failing. In response, Nahum suggested an option to explicitly pick a third-party instant provider rather than enforcing bigger rules on mining, which would lead to implicit centralization.
Updated on: 2023-06-09T00:00:11.467148+00:00