ICYMI: assorted links and monthly round-up
ICYMI: assorted links and monthly round-up
Crypto, research papers, and other distractions
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Assorted links
The World Bank published a paper on crypto-asset activity around the world. This is about which regions are driving uptake and what may be motivating it.
As the Logic reported, the push to modernize Canada’s payment systems went off the rails. It’s a long read, but it’s also a fascinating one if you’re interested in why money moves the way it does in Canada. To me, it’s a story about the capture of a public-purpose program by industry incumbents.
Sean Speer wrote about why conservatives are so keen on cryptocurrencies.
If Canada’s push to modernize the payment systems has been a relative failure, Brazil’s has been a relative success. The Bank for International Settlements published a paper, one of whose key findings is that technocratic authority and the courage to use it were precursors of success.
“Slime robot controlled by magnets could grab objects inside your body.”
The Globe and Mail published a long read about corporate Canada’s “stark warning” to the Liberal government ahead of budget 2022. Two things stood out to me. First, there’s a perception that the government is mostly talk, not action. Second, there’s no shortage in policy ideas, although there is in consensus and execution know-how.
Vitalik Buterin was on the cover of Time magazine. Here’s the feature: “The Man Behind Ethereum is Worried About Crypto’s Future.”
Tyler Cowen writes at Bloomberg about how to make the business conference better. Also, scarcity can be a good thing: “Another pandemic lesson is that it is fine, thank you, to have fewer conferences. I know many people who were “conference-starved” during the pandemic. They actually began to crave attendance at these strange events. In turn, I have anecdotal evidence that conferences I have attended or organized recently have been far more popular than past such conferences. That suggests a higher level of appreciation and enthusiasm when conferences are scarce. Maybe that is a better world for everyone?”
This month, there was a legitimate debate about open banking that quickly turned into a fintech status war. Rita Trichur argued that Canada needs to update its privacy legislation before making progress on open banking. On Twitter is where the debate turned into a fintech status war (check out the whole thread). A proper response came a few days later in the form of a Globe and Mail op-ed by Borrowell CEO Andrew Graham, EQ Bank’s Mahima Poddar, and Senator Colin Deacon.
Philip Deck wrote about the importance of trust in digital currencies for the Hub. The implication for me is this: at the margin, the Bank of Canada needs to listen a little less to textbook economists and a little more to well-rounded social theorists if it wants central bank digital currency to be a success.
Crypto isn't going anywhere new
As crypto absorbs more and more popular attention, it’s going to get harder and harder to tell the signal from the noise. There are many people who think crypto land is a Wild West (it isn’t), and there are people who are calling for regulation to support the growth of crypto (be careful what you wish for).
A couple of weeks later, Tyler Cowen wrote a piece about how the future of crypto is going to be boring—and bright: “Someday, perhaps — though that day seems far-off now — crypto may well become just another boring financial instrument. If and when that day comes, it will be worth remembering that, when it comes to economic affairs, boring can be exactly what you are looking for.”
Stop missing the point
Have I told you that I’m tired of reading the same two types of pieces about web3 over and over again? There’s web3 optimism and web3 pessimism, and most of the discourse out there is derivative of one or the other. It’s a shame, because we need more meta-discourse.
A few readers told me this piece was a little more abstruse than my standard fare. To be honest, it disappointed me a bit to hear that my standard fare isn’t also abstruse.
One reader had never heard of Rene Girard before and asked me for more resources. So I’m sharing them with the rest of you, in case you’re interested:
A book that introduces Girard’s idea in more detail but also accessibly.
A YouTube discussion about mimetic theory (which features the author who wrote the aforementioned book).
There’s a forthcoming seven-part lecture series about Rene Girard. Keep your eyes out.