Marathon Digital CEO Sees Bitcoin as an Ecosystem; Not a Product

The cryptocurrency market has grown substantially since the inception of its flagship digital asset – Bitcoin (BTC) almost 15 years ago. Till now, none of the altcoins have come close to beating its dominance. Recently, Marathon Digital Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: MARA) CEO, Fried Thiel, shared insights on the future of BTC in The Metaverse Podcast.

Bitcoin is Solution to All Sorts of Problems

Marathon Digital has come a long way after failing rigorously in different businesses, highlighted the CEO. Today, the company stands among the leading Bitcoin miners in the sector. Last month, the company mined over 1200 bitcoins, a 77% increase in monthly yield.

Fred Thiel, sees the crowned cryptocurrency as an ultimate solution. He said, “I don’t look at Bitcoin as a product, I look at Bitcoin as an ecosystem and as a solution to all sorts of problems in the world not just financial services and speeding up Financial transactions and creating decentralized ownership the ability to tokenize things but I look at it as foundational as the internet.”

He used the Internet as an analogy to explain BTC adoption in the near future. The virtual currency is facing a lack of trust similar to the initial days of the Internet. Additionally, Fred compared the flagship asset to Ethereum (ETH), the second largest cryptocurrency. The Beacon Chain bearer is more convoluted than BTC considering ETH blockchain is constantly evolving while BTC isn’t.

With context to regulatory affairs, he believes the company has an upper hand. According to Marathon CEO, “We have the benefit that we’re a Bitcoin pure play. So, from the eyes of the SEC work mod, we operate in a market that’s not regulated by the SEC relative to the commodity we’re mining, and the CFTC and even the IRS have all agreed on how they’re going to deal with Bitcoin.” Marathon Digital CEO stated.

Thiel said that the ‘Bitcoin industry tends to move on rumors,’ while highlighting Apple’s (NASDAQ: AAPL) use of high profile announcements to drive up stock value. Additionally, Bitcoin ETFs could help hasten adoption globally.

Major companies including Valkyrie (NASDAQ: BTF), Grayscale (OTCMKTS: GBTC), BlackRock (NYSE: BLK) and more have made Bitcoin ETF proposals, which could boost adoption but may lead to a spike in volatility as the companies would have to buy/sell BTC based on deposits.

Regarding the future of BTC mining, Marathon chair points to increasing difficulty in generating revenue. Subsidies are halved every four years, and this may lead to a point where a block’s transaction fee is higher than the subsidy. A similar scenario developed during the Ordinals rush. Transaction fee rose rapidly on the back of increasing demand for block space. Thiel believes BTC and ETH will survive in the long run alongside some stablecoins, although they have to be regulated like banks.

Moreover, the developing layer-2 (L2) solutions may get easier. Marathon Digital CEO explained a user might use a clone of the BTC blockchain to record data, all of which is eventually recorded into the original blockchain or the base layer. Requirement for proof-of-work (PoW) and proof-of-stake (PoS) mechanisms is then eliminated as the L2 solution is anchored to the original blockchain.

Blockchain Adoption May Go Beyond Finance Sector

Simplicity drives adoption and several aspects like non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are still complicated, Thiel says. Unlike Ethereum, Bitcoin’s base layer never changes. One could develop something on top of the BTC blockchain, and won’t have to worry about any rework from the ground up.

Blockchain technologies may see a wider integration in non-financial aspects including the metaverse, healthcare and more. Additionally, artificial intelligence (AI) will be a key player in assisting operations amongst these technologies.

Currently, there are 420 Million crypto users globally, or 5.25% of the planet’s population. Moreover, a lot of people are unaware of blockchain technology. The nascent industry has a long way to go. The recent clampdown from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) led to a major decline in the market. While the enforcement is hurting the industry, several cases that have been dragging on may get expedited, providing more clarity on the stance of regulators and industry players.

Andrew is a blockchain developer who developed his interest in cryptocurrencies while his post-graduation. He is a keen observer of details and shares his passion for writing along with being a developer. His backend knowledge about blockchain helps him give a unique perspective to his writing