Gresham's Law - Bad Money Drives Out Good Money
I came across a white paper regarding Gresham's Law that discusses the importance of true utility vs memes and other coins and tokens that have no real purpose. I summarized the doc using Notebook by Google, which is a great tool and is still free. Discuss in comments... Here is an outline summarizing the key points of the provided document: I. Introduction - The article discusses Gresham's Law and its application to blockchain networks. - It highlights a shift from traditional networks to blockchain networks, which will significantly alter commerce. - II. Gresham's Law Explained - Gresham's Law states that "bad money drives out good money". - Good money has a commodity value close to its face value, while bad money has a divergence between these values. - In an economy with both, good money is removed from circulation due to its higher intrinsic value, leading to the dominance of bad money. - Example: Pre-1964 silver quarters in the US are hoarded due to their silver content, while post-1964 quarters remain in circulation. - - III. Application to Blockchain Technologies - A modified version of Gresham's Law can be applied to cryptocurrencies, where utility or usefulness replaces commodity value. - Cryptocurrencies with greater utility will become more valuable than those with limited functionality. - Example: ETH, which powers smart contracts, is more useful than DOGE, which primarily serves as a cryptocurrency and a meme. - Specialization is important in the blockchain space, where different blockchains will excel in different verticals. - The most successful projects will have the best technology, partnerships, and network effects. IV. Blockchain and Competitive Advantage - Blockchain technology is essential for economic agents to remain competitive, due to its ability to scale and reduce transaction costs. - Smart contracts and automation offer companies economies of scale and immunity to human error. - Businesses that quickly leverage blockchain technology will gain a decisive competitive advantage. - Metcalfe's Law states that the value of a network is proportional to the square of the number of its nodes, meaning greater network participation leads to greater value. - In blockchain, the value is tied to the specific activities conducted on the network and is captured by the network's tokens.