Edward Snowden Urges Focus on Bitcoin Amsterdam Fundamentals

Latest News and Insights on Bitcoin

At the packed Genesis Stage hall in Amsterdam, Edward Snowden’s words to the audience highlighted the ever-increasing importance of Bitcoin in a world of government surveillance, devaluing fiat currencies, and restrictive policies. The renowned whistleblower’s address summed up a recurring theme during the two-day conference, emphasizing the role of decentralized protocols like Bitcoin and Nostrin in giving individuals control over their wealth and privacy.

Cointelegraph spoke to prominent Bitcoin developers, investors, builders, and supporters in attendance at the Bitcoin Amsterdam event. Despite the ongoing bear market, the conference drew a few thousand attendees searching for the latest news and insights in the Bitcoin (BTC) industry.

Many prominent figures highlighted the value of Bitcoin as a store of value against the diminishing purchasing power of fiat currencies. However, Snowden was critical of the continual focus on the value of BTC over its importance as a decentralized tool:

“We’re contorting ourselves to pass through the keyhole of tyranny.”

The Impact of Bitcoin on Edward Snowden’s Journey

Edward Snowden’s address at the conference was arguably one of the most anticipated, as he discussed Bitcoin’s role in his rebellion against the United States government and its surveillance of citizens. In 2013, Snowden used Bitcoin to pay for the servers that held the classified information sent to journalists, which exposed the NSA’s intrusion into the lives of American citizens. Snowden pointed out that as Bitcoin’s popularity has grown, it has been met with opposition by governments, legislators, and traditional financial institutions. He also discussed the potential influence that Bitcoin ETFs could have on the value of the cryptocurrency, stating that it is a form of “subordination” or “subjugation” by those who regulate traditional finance.

Snowden also shared his belief that Bitcoin has “a privacy problem,” noting the emergence of privacy tools like CoinJoin and mixers, which are indicative of the pressure that the decentralized protocol is facing.

In 2023, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission took action against the cryptocurrency space, which Snowden believes is an example of the control that exists and society needs to stop asking for permission by creating decentralized tools. He praised the creation of Nostr, a platform that integrates free speech and free trade, which drew a significant crowd at the conference.

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