A Brief Summary and Background of Virtual Currencies

Virtual currencies, also known as “cryptocurrencies,” are digital forms of money. They are created using code available to the public, then invested in by the general population. As the cryptocurrencies popularity and investments grow, the value of the coin rises. With the potential to make a fortune, the risk of failure does increase with it. Each coin gets more unstable and susceptible to plummets and drops in the price. For example, if one decided to invest $100USD into a cryptocurrency, buying each coin for $1, would lose $10 if the coins value dropped 10$ overall. If a country or large economic factor decided to invest in cryptocurrencies, spending millions in hopes of an increase can be devastated with just one plummet. Virtual money is user friendly and specifically designed for the public use with minor investments. Overall, investing in any form of virtual money would be considered too much of a risk, putting the investing country into jeopardy.

The Upside of Investing in Cryptocurrencies
   

Although investing in virtual money can possibly bankrupt a large economic factor such as The United States of America, many optimistic outcomes can be predicted. Even if a cryptocurrency’s value does decline, the rebound opportunity can be almost too good to pass up. An example of this “bounce back” would be Bitcoin during 2017. During December of 2017, Bitcoin’s value rapidly skyrocketed, soaring past $15,000USD per coin. If The United States of America invested prior to this craze, millions of dollars could have turned into billions. These billions could have been used to assume national debt and repay foreign loans, decreasing interest of our payments and increasing The United States’ debt credibility. Although many currencies such as Bitcoin tend to decline immediately after, the opportunity is surmountable and easy to take advantage of. In conclusion, cryptocurrencies do have few benefits when invested in through large amounts.

The Dark Side of Cryptocurrencies
   

While Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies claim to assume national debt, they prolong the inevitability of each virtual currency crashing. Isaac Newton stated in his law of gravity, “What goes up, must come down.” This is not only true through gravity, but virtual currencies as well. The decision to buy and sell each cryptocurrency is a difficult one, so the question poses, “Who should buy and sell the fate of our future?” The United States of America would need to appoint a whole committee just to regulate the cryptocurrency and its’ value. Certainly, outrage would spark if just one person, such as the president of The United States of America, controlled a considerably large amount of money by himself. Another argument against virtual money is presented by recent events of hacking and cyber-terrorism. Recently, countries such as China and Russia have increased their military but not with troops. Extremely skilled hackers have been recruited by governments in order to expose and infiltrate other networks. While The United States of America claims to have an extremely secure government server, nothing is impossible for hackers to enter. If a hacker did manage to infiltrate The United States of America’s network, the entire economy as well as defense and integrity would be compromised. For instance, if a hacker did enter the government servers, he/she could trade the cryptocurrencies to their home country, devastating The United States of America’s economy while bolstering the hacker’s motherland. Hackers can even infiltrate the investor’s choice in virtual money, killing the coin from inside and making the monetary value worthless. All in all, hackers and other disputes can nearly destroy a country and their economy, especially if the country is streamlined in on virtual money.

Final Verdict
   

Overall, cryptocurrencies being used as an investment by large economic powers such as governments are considered a negative impact. If The United States of America did decide to invest, the risks would severely outnumber the redeeming qualities. Not only would The United States of America be in danger for an economic depression and collapse but also would be at risk for a war on hackers and even foreign countries. If The United States of America did decide to invest in cryptocurrencies, the fabled “War of the Cryptocurrencies” would become an ever-present reality.