Gold — the very word invokes images of buried treasure and Indiana Jones.
This ancient asset class has inspired conquests and hoarding from peasants to princes — and it still does.
But how will it contend with advancements in fintech like GoldfinX?
Gold — A Brief History
Pharaohs, Romans, and even mythical beings such as Greek gods have all held the same ideals towards gold: it’s an investment in everlasting purity and value. Gold was viewed in symbolism throughout time, touching on the importance of things having collective, attainable, and measurable value.
Not much changed.
The evolution of society from tribes to kingdoms to modern governments has not changed the need for gold assets.
Yes, customs have changed alongside habits, but people have always tucked little bits of gold under their floorboards or other safe places. People have always held gold as a store of value.
Perhaps people will always hold gold?
The Rise of a New Gold?
In 2009, a new form of gold could be said to have been created: digital gold. Bitcoin.
Why would anyone think Bitcoin is like digital gold?
Both of them share similar properties:
- Scarcity. You can’t go to your backyard and start digging for gold. It’s scarce. Likewise, you can’t mine Bitcoin without investing in proper equipment and finding a place to mine Bitcoin where the electricity costs are low.
- Fungibility. One ounce of gold is the same as another ounce. Similarly, 0.00000001 of BTC is the same as another.
- Accessibility. You can buy and sell gold with people around the world. You can do the same with Bitcoin.
There are more reasons why the two are similar. These similarities have propelled Bitcoin from humble beginnings to a multi-billion dollar market cap that’s a force to be reckoned with.
Bitcoin started with adoption by anarchists, hackers, undercover journalists, cipher/cypherpunks. Now, ten years later, it’s mostly in the hands of innovators, speculators, and more prominent investors who took the torch and put their own spin on bitcoin to boost worldwide adoption.
They took BTC’s value to almost $20,000 … but since then, they’ve been failing to raise the bar in terms of adoption or surpassing previous highs.
It’s Time for Gold’s Innovation
Even though gold and Bitcoin hold a number of similarities, the fact is that Bitcoin will not replace gold.
Physical gold holds a timeless place in people’s definition of ‘store of value.’ It will never be replaced.
But gold can still be innovated.
The innovation at the forefront right now is gold-protected tokens like those offered by GoldFinX.
Buying, storing, and selling physical gold has always been a time-consuming process stuck in the physical world.
The innovation is combining physical gold with digital security.
Gold-backed tokens secured by blockchain smart contracts provide people with the ability to buy, store, and sell gold from the comfort of your phone or computer.
Each GIX token is not only secured by the blockchain (so that it cannot be pirated), it’s also protected by physical gold itself — which backs every token.
Granted, there are other gold-backed tokens (such as PAXG), but GoldFinX goes a step further by actively providing adequate capital to Artisanal Gold Mines worldwide.
These artisanal gold miners are then incentivized to employ socially conscious and sustainable mining methods. Such methods reduce the negative impact on the surrounding ecological systems which mining physical gold ultimately has.
It’s a win-win because in exchange, GoldFinX is granted a 20% Lifetime Royalty share of all ongoing production.
A Storm of Innovation and Adoption
The current market sentiment towards DeFi, gold-backed tokens, and other fintech innovations is quite invigorating.
The storm of innovation and adoption of smart contracts, tokens with real-world applications (such as making gold easier to buy and sell around the world), is timed right along with the growing view that a big alt season is approaching.
If bitcoin keeps climbing higher towards All-Time-Highs, then perhaps it’s time to talk about picking the right horses and making sure to invest in coins that don’t just offer simple run of the mill solutions and vapourware — but ones that offer real-world applications, partnerships, and provide tangible products you can use today.
Disclaimer
The information discussed by The Coin Magazine is not financial advice. This is for educational and informational purposes only. Any information or strategies are thoughts and opinions relevant to accepted levels of risk tolerance of the writer/reviewers and their risk tolerance may be different than yours. We are not responsible for any losses that you may incur as a result of any investments directly or indirectly related to the information provided. Do your due diligence and rating before making any investments and consult your financial advisor. The researched information presented we believe to be correct and accurate however there is no guarantee or warranty as to the accuracy, timeliness, completeness. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are high-risk investments so please do your due diligence. Copyright The Coin Magazine All rights reserved.
