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Comment by blep_ | Hacker News Reader

> Many people have tried to explain to me why cryptocurrencies aren't a Ponzi scheme.

I love how many people will read this sentence, and then respond by trying to explain to you why cryptocurrencies aren't a Ponzi scheme.

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cryptocurrencies don't have to be ponzi schemes but most of them are because the crypto "investors" want to get into ponzi schemes.

They don't "believe" in shitcoin's "white paper" but they believe there are more ponzi buyers.

To be fair most retailers do the same with stocks so it's not that different. I don't even mention CFDs where the vast majority lose. Even "analysts" score various instruments based on "demand"/market sentiment not value.

Stocks are different because there’s actually an underlying business beyond “waiting for the next guy”. For example in a non-ponzi security there is long term value as a business grows. No such thing for shitcoins. Nobody is saying sentiment doesn’t matter in the actual economy, it’s made up of humans, of course sentiment matters. It’s “is sentiment the only thing that matters?”, and in the case of crypto the answer is yes.

A year or two ago there were actual business ideas behind some coins like file coin for example but now it's not even that anymore.

Indeed but then people found out they don't care about what's behind the ticker (i.e underlying value) as long as its price goes up. You can find the same behaviour on many stocks as well(i.e $AMC more recently).

> Stocks are different because there’s actually an underlying business beyond “waiting for the next guy”.

I agree but this doesn't change the fact that many people don't care about the underlying business and often the stock price and underlying business are disconnected. They just gamble whatever is "hot" or if they think they are smarter they trade the chart. In this way it's no different than crypo "investing". Both can make you rich or get you bankrupt, fast.

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