When I started interviewing people for Dirty Coin two years ago, Bitcoin was experiencing a sharp decline in dollar value. So much so that many people asked me if I was sure I was still going to produce a movie about a "ponzi scheme finally going to zero".
My answer to that was that I couldn't envision, with the current state of the network, that Bitcoin would ever go back to zero and no matter how far it went down in dollar value, it would always retain its value as a censorship resistant, borderless money that could be used by anyone.
In my travels around the world I've seen many different use-cases where Bitcoin or stablecoins like USDT are used transactionally or as a way to invest money.
In the states you'll often hear critics claim that only cryptobros and criminals are into Bitcoin yet those same critics lack a rudimentary understanding of Bitcoin so its hard to take them seriously, especially when some can only resort to mean-tweeting to try to discredit what they don't understand.
It seems that Bitcoin does in fact in solve many problems and how and why people invest in it or use it, depends on what problem they're trying to solve. As Bitcoin becomes more ubiquiotous and accepted in more locations, its usefulness and value also grows.
Contrary to what critics would like you to think, Chainalysis released a report saying that Africa, not cryptobros in New York City pubs, accounts for the largest global percentage of crypto transactions under $1,000.
In deciding which statisitics to include in the short film STRANDED, I thought that this would be a little-known figure that would open our viewers' eyes and ignite conversations surrounding why this would be, and more importantly, how it is that this figure is known?
Originally the text on screen said "Today, 80% of all Bitcoin transactions happen in Africa" and it went over a sound byte of an interview that said those words but I later decided to eliminate the voice and only leave the text up with ambient sound.
The text, however, should have read "80% of all crypto transactions" due to this being the figure I found with an actual source. Why the difference? Bitcoin is just bitcoin, but "crypto transactions" include other cryptocurrencies on top of Bitcoin.
I will be republishing the short film with the quote updated for additional accuracy based on what we can confirm, and will have more indepth validation of facts for DIRTY COIN, our feature documentary currently in post-poduction.
Sincerely,
-Alana
https://www.chainalysis.com/blog/sub-saharan-africa-cryptocurrency-geography-report-2022-preview/
More Sources
https://crystalblockchain.com/geography-of-international-blockchain-transactions/
Originally posted November 24, 2023.
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