Bitcoin is one of the most disruptive inventions in our lifetime. To understand this, we have to take a brief look at monetary history and how the money systems in place today are full of third party risk. Bitcoin's decentralized digital nature is the currency of the future. It's digital gold, programmable money. You can send value to anyone one anywhere in the world immediately and for free.

1. Bitcoin
More disruptive than the Internet?
#bcn13bitcoin
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Luke Stokes
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@lukestokes

3. Hold on to your butts…
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Brief history of money
Describe the problem we need to disrupt
10,000 foot overview of Bitcoin
Connect the dots
My Story
Q/A

4. A ridiculously brief history
1694 - Bank of London
1791 - First Bank of the United States
1817 - Second Bank of the United States
1913 - Federal Reserve Act
1933 - Executive Order 1602
1944 - Bretton Woods
1971 - The Nixon Shock

5. So what is fiat?
● Any money declared by a government to be
legal tender.
● State-issued money which is neither
convertible by law to any other thing, nor
fixed in value in terms of any objective
standard.
● Money without intrinsic value.

6. Is fiat really so bad?
● 775 historical fiat currencies, most failed
● Average lifespan: 27 years

7. World Reserve Currency
Historical World Reserve Currency Status

8. Where does Bitcoin come in?
We’ll get there…
First some important quotes.

9. Quotes
"Give me control of a nation's money and I care
not who makes it's laws"
— Mayer Amschel Bauer Rothschild

10. Quotes
"It is well that the people of the nation do not
understand our banking and monetary system,
for if they did, I believe there would be a
revolution before tomorrow morning."
— Henry Ford

11. Quotes
"History records that the money changers have
used every form of abuse, intrigue, deceit, and
violent means possible to maintain their control
over governments by controlling money and it's
issuance."
— James Madison

12. Quotes
“You are a den of vipers and thieves. I have
determined to rout you out, and by the Eternal,
I will rout you out!”
— Andrew Jackson

13. Quotes
"Whoever controls the volume of money in any
country is absolute master of all industry and
commerce."
— James A. Garfield

14. Quotes
"I believe that banking institutions are more
dangerous to our liberties than standing armies.
...The issuing power (of money) should be
taken away from the banks and restored to the
people to whom it properly belongs."
— Thomas Jefferson

15. Where are we going...
● If you control the money supply, you control
the people.
● If you control the credit, you control the
money supply.
● If you control the risk, you control the credit.

16. Third Party Risk
Your Bank
Your Government
Your Credit Card Company

17. What is Bitcoin?
The first decentralized digital currency.
http://www.weusecoins.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bitcoin
Cryptocurrency means trust is based on math

18. Bitcoin Address
“Owning” some Bitcoin

19. Example Bitcoin Address

20. Example: writing a check
Centralized clearing house needed

21. BTC: No Central Authority
Open source protocol
“Blockchain” public ledger
Proof of work algorithm or “mining”
No double spends
Controlled, predictable money supply

22. Programmable Money
Credit Cards created before the Internet
Bitcoin is built on top of the Internet
It’s not just money...

23. My Story
Started in February 2013
http://bestoked.blogspot.com/2013/03/bitcoindo-you-speak-it.html
http://bestoked.blogspot.com/2013/04/mybitcoin-obsession.html

24. Got into mining...
I got into mining… “Free money!!!”

25. Got into mining...
It didn’t go as planned

26. How to get started?
Buy/Sell: Coinbase, Bitstamp
http://howtobuybitcoins.info/us.html
Merchants: Bitpay, Coinbase, FoxyCart
Mining…?

27. My suggestion would be to avoid mining

28. In Summary
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Our current system is risky
Decentralization and math remove risk
We need to control our own money
The future of money will be a digital,
decentralized, and programmable
● Bitcoin is the current leader

29. Questions?
Tweet me for a link to slides: @lukestokes #bcn13bitcoin