One of the earliest criticisms leveled against Bitcoin when it started making the rounds in investment circles, was that it wasn’t “backed” in the traditional sense.
Why would anyone buy Bitcoin?
After all, Bitcoin isn’t a derivative of a commodity, not a lien on an asset, can’t be viewed as a mortgage on real estate, and it’s certainly not backed by the promise of a government.
Yet despite all of these criticisms, there has been no shortage of investors willing to plonk real sums of money to buy Bitcoin, presumably because there will is a finite supply and perhaps as a hedge against the largesse of government.
Whatever the investment case (or lack thereof) for Bitcoin, it’s hard to make a case that it’s “backed,” at least not in the traditional sense of an investable asset, although perhaps Raoul Pal will tell you that Bitcoin is “backed by electricity,” but that’s a discussion for another forum.