Note by James R. Martin, Ph.D., CMA
Professor Emeritus, University of South Florida
Blockchain Bibliography |
Technology Related Main
"The authors provide a well-researched and entertaining account of the rise and fall of cryptocurrencies. From an all-time high of over $68,700 in mid-November 2021, the virtual currency Bitcoin fell to $16,600 at the start of 2023. By design only 21 million of Bitcoins can be mined by software and hardware. Miners are even using wasteful flaring from oil wells to create Bitcoins. Near the end of September 2023, Bitcoin price has moved to over $28,800, with some predicting one million dollars by 2025. Over 13 chapters and an epilogue, the authors use the terms fraudsters, conmen, swindlers, and scammers to describe the various actors in the crypto industry as one author spent looking down the crypto rabbit hole. The tale weaves together stories of average traders, victims, colorful crypto “visionaries,” Hollywood’s biggest true believers, anti-crypto whistleblowers, and government operatives. This read is an on-the-ground look at a perfect storm of irresponsibility and criminal fraud based on original reporting across the country and abroad, including many interviews, such as with Sam Bankman-Fried, Tether co-founder Brock Pierce, and Celsius’s Aex Mashinsky. The authors paint a disappointing picture that crypto and their by-products are at best a zero-sum game and are not used for anything productive".
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Related summaries:
Gregg, A. 2017. Start-ups embrace cryptocurrency to raise needed capital: 'Initial coin offerings' let companies raise money without ceding control. The Washington Post (December 4): A13. (Note).
Pope, K. R. and L. Black, 2023. Understanding blockchain: Cryptocurrencies aside, knowing blockchain's potential uses and impacts on operations and the finance function is critical. Strategic Finance (March): 38-45. (Summary).