Economy

Okay, then we're in agreement; it's only real value is in the conversion back to liquid money. And "betting" is entirely accurate.

I more meant it's not money because it can't be spent / consumed easily. It's a non-productive, illiquid asset in the same sense that collector cars or fine art isn't money, it's a hopeful store of value, and you'll only know what it's worth when you convert it back to liquid money.

Or maybe a better comparison would be that Beanie Babies or NFTs weren't money, they were a non-productive, illiquid asset based on hope and the greater fool theory.

I've yet to hear an argument about the value of crypto that doesn't boil down to either hope that someone else will keep buying to drive up the price, or that it's being used to reduce friction in traditional money-transfers applications, usually international transfers where fiat-to-fiat has very high fees, or money laundering and terrorist financing LOL

Interestingly, reducing friction in international money transfers is, I think, a laudable goal. I'm still not sure that makes the crypto count as an asset instead of just a technological function. The SWIFT system isn't an asset, for example, it's just a tool.