pull down to refresh
What is the government (western government or governments) going to do when Iran starts paying china, or starts paying Russia literally in bitcoin?
Iran is taking bitcoin for 'safe passage' tolls from supertankers... And you think the US wants to stand by and "track the flows?"
The US already wants to pressure miners if they aren't already are, to not include overseas entities transactions even though they'll eventually get mined anyway.
You think the US wants Iran to use bitcoin for international trade, like they are starting to do?
They NSA will trace it and have nearly perfect insight, something they can't do with ships full of oil or gold.
Then when China or Iran then sends it to ActBlue or whatever in the US to fuck with domestic affairs, they have a full chain of evidence to deal with the domestic actors.
Every Iran headline is fake, but let's assume they did take Bitcoin for tolls (they can only do this with US approval anyway given our Navy), that would be great for the US... because the US can then watch where those sats end up. They don't even need to go through the hassle of installing CIA operatives at Barclays, Sberbank, or Credit Suisse.
The US already wants to pressure miners
Not sure to what you're referring, but export controls on Bitcoin would be exceptionally bullish. Keeping the US financially dominant enhances national security.
the US wants Iran to use bitcoin for international trade
The US wants everyone to use Bitcoin for international trade, and end the Triffin Dilemma.
The government doesn't give a rats ass about our $5 or even $5000 transactions.
They care about entities on the OFAC list and or foreign controlled patronage networks operating domestically that move hundreds of millions to billions.
Those are the kinds of flows they can track with Bitcoin and why it's critical to NatSec, because international bankers don't share domestic national security priorities.