The DemystifySci Podcast Money Without Banks - Brandon Quittem, Demystifysci #383
Nov 23, 2025
Bitcoin expert Brandon Quittem, an amateur mycologist, explores the intersections of banking and blockchain. He traces the history of digital currency, from the fall of the gold standard to the rise of Bitcoin as a decentralized alternative. Quittem critiques Modern Monetary Theory and discusses the cypherpunk movement's focus on technological solutions over political action. Delving into Bitcoin's mining mechanics, he explains the importance of digital scarcity and network effects, highlighting how the future of money may be reshaping before our eyes.
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Code Over Ballots
- The cypherpunks built privacy-first code as an alternative to political change.
- They chose to write software to make centralized surveillance and control obsolete.
Build Tech To Protect Liberty
- To defend liberties, build technological solutions that reduce centralized control.
- If voting fails you, use code to preserve privacy and economic freedom.
Banks Are Ledgers, Bitcoin Is Peer-To-Peer
- Dollars in banks are mostly ledger entries, not physical money.
- Bitcoin differs by enabling peer-to-peer transfers with no intermediaries who can stop payments.
