The controversies surrounding digital currencies continue to widen the divide between those who believe in the power of blockchain technology and those who don’t. According to a recent family office report from Goldman Sachs, 32% of family offices currently invest in digital assets across the board. Those invested in digital currencies rose from 16% in 2021 to 26%. However, the proportion not invested and not interested in the future has increased from 39% to 62%.
The evolution of digital currencies
The beginnings of Bitcoin, the first digital currency, are shrouded with mystery. Following the ‘08 financial crisis, an anonymous creator called Satoshi Nakamoto published the Bitcoin Whitepaper in 2009, recording a breakthrough in cryptography. In it, he proposed a peer-to-peer electronic cash system that relied on computational power, or proof of work, to verify transactions. Simply put, the online network system, or the blockchain, could issue currency and function independently of third parties such as banks.
