Ponzi

Well, that was interesting. I get many more private emails in response to blog posts than comments. Yesterday, in response to Reflecting on Ponzi Schemes , I got a few that said anyone under 35 needs a net native currency, and that’s crypto. A few others said some versions of all governments are Ponzi schemes. And I got a few that implied I hated crypto. Earlier last year, one of my partners told me that I’d developed a reputation with other VCs (presumably our partner funds ) that I hate crypto. At the time, I deflected and said that I didn’t hate crypto; I just thought there was considerable Ponzi-like behavior in crypto. I’m regularly cynical about things on our internal Slack channel and periodically post about big blowups, including in crypto. ...

At the end of 2022, some people started shouting that Crypto was a Ponzi Scheme following earlier declarations by Bill Gates , Warren Buffett , and Charlie Munger . Others, especially those in the crypto industry, were saying some version of “Well, FTX Might Looking Like a Ponzi Scheme, But Crypto is Legit and Isn’t a Ponzi Scheme .” But then someone else in the Crypto industry, on the same website, wrote Crypto Ponzi Schemes: How to Identify and Protect Yourself From These Scams . Ok. How confusing. ...