Share this article

Understanding the Coming Currency Cold War

Will the future of currency be led by the U.S., China, Bitcoin or some combination we can barely imagine today?

Updated Sep 14, 2021, 10:01 a.m. Published Sep 27, 2020, 1:00 p.m.

Will the future of currency be led by the U.S., China, Bitcoin or some combination we can barely imagine today?

STORY CONTINUES BELOW

Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters

By signing up, you will receive emails about CoinDesk products and you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy.

For more episodes and free early access before our regular 3 p.m. Eastern time releases, subscribe with Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocketcasts, Google Podcasts, Castbox, Stitcher, RadioPublica, iHeartRadio or RSS.

This episode is sponsored by Crypto.com, Bitstamp and Nexo.io.

This week’s Long Reads Sunday is a reading of “The Currency Cold War: Four Scenarios” by Jeff Wilser – part of CoinDesk’s Internet 2030 series.

In it, Wilsner talks to experts about four scenarios:

A multi-currency scenario, where exchange is abstracted away via digital wallets
A China-led scenario
A U.S.-led scenario
A bitcoin/non-state currency-led scenario

In addition to reading, NLW gives his take on which scenario is most likely.

Note: The views expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of CoinDesk, Inc. or its owners and affiliates.

More For You

Solana CME Futures Fell Short of BTC and ETH Debuts, but There's a Catch

Mar 18, 2025

When adjusted for asset market capitalization SOL's relative futures volume looks better, K33 Research noted.

What to know:

Solana's SOL futures began trading on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) on Monday, with a notional daily volume of $12.3 million and $7.8 million in open interest, significantly lower than the debuts of bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH) futures.
Despite the seemingly lackluster debut, when adjusted to market value, SOL's first-day figures are more in line with BTC's and ETH's, according to K33 Research.
Despite the bearish market conditions, the launch of CME SOL futures offers new ways for institutions to manage their exposure to the token, said Joshua Lim of FalconX.