In fact, Bitcoin has already doubled in price—up 33% since the most recent halving. Great, right? Wrong. Headlines are celebrating Bitcoin’s comeback, predicting that it will soon break all-time highs. What’s actually occurring is quite the opposite and more complicated, and we’d argue, frankly, pretty horrifying. Don’t get duped by the temporary profits—the future health and spirit of Bitcoin hangs in the balance.
Institutions Hijacked Bitcoin's Scarcity
Originally intended to strengthen Bitcoin’s scarcity and decentralized nature, the halving is now being weaponized by institutional actors. Firms such as Strategy and Tether argue that they are simply “playing along” with the current market conditions. Their collective buying power is bending the market beyond the breaking point.
Think about it: Bitcoin was conceived as a digital alternative to fiat currency, immune to the whims of central banks and governments. The halving was one of the most critical aspects of this design, a built-in shock absorber that would rein in inflation and guarantee scarcity. As we enter into an age of Bitcoin institutions, that scarcity is really in their hands, as they control the majority of that scarcity.
Picture this — stumbling upon a massive stash of gold. Now imagine a handful of large corporations holding it all, controlling the market price and dictating the terms to all other governments. Where's the decentralization in that? Where's the freedom?
ETFs Are A House Of Cards
Now, the Bitcoin ETF boom is speeding up this perilous trend. Their bullishness provides an opening for more traditional investors to enter Bitcoin. They are in fact building an entirely paper Bitcoin market, which becomes increasingly decoupled from the underlying asset.
These ETFs are fueled by traditional finance. Remember what happened in 2008? A culture of unfettered greed and reckless speculation came very close to sinking the entire global economy. Now, we’re letting the same players, the same incentives, into the Bitcoin ecosystem.
Let me ask you a question. Specifically, are these ETFs actually purchasing Bitcoin itself, or are they establishing synthetic assets that track the currency’s value. Are they adding to the security and decentralization of the network, or just taking advantage of its volatility to earn a profit? I think we know the answer.
This is not investment, this is a betrayal of all that made Bitcoin great in the first place.
Centralization Kills The Dream
Remember Satoshi Nakamoto's vision? A decentralized digital currency that doesn’t require intermediaries or clearinghouses. The recent Ethereum halving was the keystone in that vision. It served as a self-regulating counterweight, keeping power decentralized and out of the hands of any one individual or institution.
Instead, today, we’re witnessing the same thing happen with crypto—with the concentration of Bitcoin ownership in the hands of a few powerful institutions. This level of concentration creates the possibility for censorship, manipulation, and eventually control over the Bitcoin network.
Consider this: If a handful of institutions control a significant portion of the Bitcoin hash rate, they could theoretically collude to rewrite the blockchain, effectively censoring transactions or even reversing them. Is that the future we want?
This isn’t only a matter of price, though it certainly is that as well. It’s a matter of power. It’s about who gets to shape the future of money.
In fact Bitcoin hit an all-time high above $109,000 just this past January 20th. This increase came 273 days post the 2024 maturing, the marker of an even quicker market cycle. At what cost? In an uncertain world, are we giving up the core values of decentralization and choice for momentary advantage?
We need to be vigilant. We have to find the courage to challenge the story that is being sold to us by the establishment and the corporate media. To ensure the future stretches to the decentralized vision, we need to fund decentralized alternatives and battle for Bitcoin’s original vision against powerful forces.
The halving cycle might be over, but the battle for a truly decentralized future is far from it. Don't let Bitcoin be hijacked. As we march onward into the new world, it’s not too late to take back that dream.
