Satoshi Nakamoto is worried about fiat currencies, according to recently discovered emails

Recently released emails from Satoshi Nakamoto from May 2009 show that the creator of Bitcoin (BTC) has long been concerned about the devaluation of fiat currencies by central banks.

The series of emails was released by early Bitcoin contributor Martti Malmi, who said he did not feel comfortable sharing his private correspondence with Satoshi but decided to do so after witnessing a legal case in the United Kingdom, possibly regarding self-proclaimed BTC creator Craig Wright.

In an email to Malmi, Satoshi highlights the biggest flaw of government-issued currencies like the US dollar:

“The fundamental problem with conventional currency is all the trust required to make it work. The central bank should be trusted not to devalue the currency, but the history of fiat currencies is full of violations of that trust.

Banks should be trusted to hold our money and transfer it electronically, but they lend it out in waves of credit bubbles with barely a fraction in reserve. We have to trust them with our privacy, trust them not to let identity thieves empty our accounts.”

Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that in 2021, the purchasing power of the U.S. dollar has declined by about 20% since 2010, after accounting for inflation.

Satoshi also says that throughout history, people have always used assets that have a finite supply as money. He notes that people’s perception drives the value of a currency more than its use:

“Historically, people have accepted scarce goods as money, using what is available, such as shells or stones, when necessary. Each has a core of usefulness that helped get the process started, but the monetary value ultimately proves to be much more than just the functional value.

Most of its value comes from the value others place on it. Gold, for example, is beautiful, doesn’t rust and is easy to work with, but most of its value clearly doesn’t come from that. Brass is shiny and resembles gold in color. The vast majority of gold lies unused in vaults, owned by governments that care nothing for its beauty.

Until now, there was no scarce commodity that could be traded across a communications channel without a trusted third party. If there is a desire to adopt a form of money that can be traded over the internet without a TTP (trusted third party), this is now possible.”

At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading at $51,636, an increase of approximately 1,127,931% since the first Bitcoin to fiat transaction in 2009, which was executed by Malmi herself.