The Age of Cryptocurrency: How Bitcoin and the Blockchain Are Challenging the Global Economic Order

　　史上頭一遭，2017年3月間，比特幣單位價格超越一盎司黃金。

　　當歐元區不穩、美元不確定，

　　一個拒絕由政府或銀行控管的去中心化貨幣，

　　將成為金融體系終結者？甚至是新一代避險救世主？



　　虛擬貨幣「比特幣」在2008年次貸風暴後應勢而生，更在2017年價壓黃金，坐穩「數位黃金」之名。目前已開採出1630多萬枚比特幣，總市值超過280億美金，發行至今，年平均漲幅達1169％。而支撐比特幣的背後技術──區塊鏈，被達沃斯世界經濟論壇點名為「帶動第四次工業革命」的科技成就；讓人得以想像一個不用害怕政府祭出錯誤金融政策、沒有低利率或負利率、貨幣寬鬆與金融危機，甚至不會有食安問題的美好未來。

 

　　從虛擬貨幣礦工、科技創業家，到矽谷投資人，紛紛投入時間精力、挹注大筆資金，只為參與一場足以顛覆世界的革命。另一方面，在傳統金融體系外的邊緣社會，計有多達25億的無銀行帳戶者，必需仰賴虛擬貨幣才能進行金融交易。在女性社會地位低下的中東國家，女性無法開立銀行帳戶，甚至無法擁有自己的財產，而比特幣有機會轉變中東女性的命運；阿根廷因外匯管制使跨國貿易成本高昂，中間來往的手續費高得嚇人，虛擬貨幣支付系統為此困境找到突破的出口，讓國民能以更低成本交易，而且更加安全；在中國，有可能成為下一次金融危機種子的「影子銀行」，也可能因為北京政府計畫引入虛擬貨幣科技而降低金融危機爆發的可能。而以上這些地下經濟，粗略統計總值達10兆美元，這個規模有多大？



　　虛擬貨幣經濟規模僅次於美國經濟，足以買下整個法國。



　　《華爾街日報》財經專家透過揭密比特幣的起源、真正的功用，以及虛擬貨幣帶來的各種瘋狂與創新。精闢解析虛擬貨幣、區塊鏈科技，與物聯網經濟的相互應用。並精彩討論趨勢背後的潛在影響。本書詳盡解析，一個拒絕由政府或銀行控管的「去中心化」「匿名」貨幣，象徵更純粹的自由與民主，正企圖建立一個前所未有的信任指標，更引爆數位時代的淘金狂潮。



　　一個不是由政府發行的貨幣，正在撼動全球經濟秩序！

　　★趨勢：區塊鏈引爆金融革命。直至2027年，全球估計有十分之一GDP透過區塊鏈儲存。

　　★價值：無現金社會來臨。2019年，全球行動支付市場規模直逼1.08兆美元，年增率37%！

　　★實用：歐日相繼承認比特幣。2017年底，全日本將有兩萬家商店接受比特幣支付。



媒體推薦



　　《虛擬貨幣革命》深入、即時，且多采多姿，為讀者帶來新的觀點體驗。──《紐約時報》



　　如果要了解比特幣的一切，《虛擬貨幣革命》是最好的選擇。本書作者非常詳盡地描述了加密電子貨幣的哲學與科技基礎，乃至於加密電子貨幣如何影響當今政治與經濟秩序。──《經濟學人》



　　《虛擬貨幣革命》以更聰明、更全面的角度談論虛擬貨幣如何改變我們的交易方式。──《財星雜誌》



　　任何對比特幣或區塊鏈技術有興趣的人，都應該讀《虛擬貨幣革命》。──《比特幣雜誌》



　　本文取自大牌出版《虛擬貨幣革命：區塊鏈科技，物聯網經濟，去中心化金融系統挑戰全球經濟秩序》

An in-depth explanation of how bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies work, their potential for good and bad, and how this is likely to affect you as a citizen, government, business, and global geopolitics.

Bitcoin became a buzzword overnight. A cyber-enigma with an enthusiastic following, it pops up in headlines and fuels endless media debate. You can apparently use it to buy anything from coffee to cars, yet few people seem to truly understand what it is. This raises the question: Why should anyone care about bitcoin?

In The Age of Cryptocurrency, Wall Street journalists Paul Vigna and Michael J. Casey deliver the definitive answer to this question. Cybermoney is poised to launch a revolution, one that could reinvent traditional financial and social structures while bringing the world’s billions of ＂unbanked＂ individuals into a new global economy. Cryptocurrency holds the promise of a financial system without a middleman, one owned by the people who use it and one safeguarded from the devastation of a 2008-type crash.

But bitcoin, the most famous of the cybermonies, carries a reputation for instability, wild fluctuation, and illicit business; some fear it has the power to eliminate jobs and to upend the concept of a nation-state. It implies, above all, monumental and wide-reaching change--for better and for worse. But it is here to stay, and you ignore it at your peril.

Vigna and Casey demystify cryptocurrency--its origins, its function, and what you need to know to navigate a cyber-economy. The digital currency world will look very different from the paper currency world; The Age of Cryptocurrency will teach you how to be ready.

MICHAEL J. CASEY writes for The Wall Street Journal, covering global finance in his ＂Horizons＂ column. He is a frequent contributor to the Journal’s MoneyBeat blog and co-authors the daily ＂BitBeat＂ with Paul Vigna. He is the host of the book-themed video series ＂WSJ Afterword＂ and a frequent guest on and host of ＂The News Hub＂ and ＂MoneyBeat.＂ His podcast on world economic affairs is forthcoming. Casey has written for such publications as Foreign Policy, The Washington Post, and The Financial Times. He is the author of two books: Che’s Afterlife: The Legacy of an Image (Vintage, 2009), one of Michiko Kakutani’s ＂best books of 2009,＂ and The Unfair Trade: How Our Broken Financial System Destroys the Middle Class (Crown, 2012).

PAUL VIGNA is a markets reporter for The Wall Street Journal, covering equities and the economy. He is a columnist and anchor for MoneyBeat. Previously a writer and editor of the MarketTalk column in DowJones Newswires, he has been a guest on the Fox Business Network, CNN, the BBC, and the John Batchelor radio show. He has been interviewed by Bitcoin magazine and appeared on the Bitcoins & Gravy podcast, and boasts a collective 20 years of journalism experience.