Bitcoin: Boom and Bust

Could bitcoin ever

overtake the dollar?

Terrence Horan/MarketWatch

Bitcoin’s future as an alternative to the dollar and other forms of paper money is under debate, but the cryptocurrency may also shake up global payment systems before its future is decided, panelists said at a recent MarketWatch Investing Insights panel discussion.

Bitcoin’s future as an alternative to the dollar and other forms of paper money is under debate, but the cryptocurrency may also shake up global payment systems before its future is decided, panelists said at a recent MarketWatch Investing Insights panel discussion. Read more.

Investing Insights is an ongoing series of special reports based on live panel discussions with experts from all areas of the financial markets. In this segment, MarketWatch Senior Columnist Robert Powell examines the future of bitcoin with guest panelists Todd Harrison, founder and CEO of Minyanville Media; Mark T. Williams, a banking and risk management expert and a professor at the Boston University School of Management; and Barry Silbert, founder and CEO of SecondMarket and founder of Bitcoin Investment Trust. This MarketWatch live event was held recently in New York.



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What is bitcoin?

Bitcoin is both a digital currency and a payment system. To understand the potential of Bitcoin as an investment, you need to know the strengths and weaknesses of each component. In a MarketWatch panel discussion, experts consider Bitcoin's structure and potential.



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Bitcoin: It's all or nothing for investors

Bitcoin promises a radical overhaul of the financial system. It also carries huge risks for investors. At a recent MarketWatch event, one panelist said: "Bitcoin is the highest-risk, highest-return investment you can possibly make."



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Why don't more people pay with bitcoin?

Bitcoin has made inroads with some merchants, but the ability for consumers to pay with this digital currency is still limited. At a recent MarketWatch event, experts explain why broader consumer adoption may require major changes.



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Who's minding the bitcoins?

In a sign of how revolutionary Bitcoin is, experts even disagree about whether this digital currency is or is not currently regulated, and which agencies should regulate it in the future. Bitcoin is both a digital currency and a payment system. To understand the potential of Bitcoin as an investment, you need to know the strengths and weaknesses of each component. In a MarketWatch panel discussion, experts consider Bitcoin's structure and potential.Bitcoin promises a radical overhaul of the financial system. It also carries huge risks for investors. At a recent MarketWatch event, one panelist said: "Bitcoin is the highest-risk, highest-return investment you can possibly make."Bitcoin has made inroads with some merchants, but the ability for consumers to pay with this digital currency is still limited. At a recent MarketWatch event, experts explain why broader consumer adoption may require major changes.In a sign of how revolutionary Bitcoin is, experts even disagree about whether this digital currency is or is not currently regulated, and which agencies should regulate it in the future.