Originally aired on October 11, 2023

In this episode of the Bad Crypto Podcast, hosts Joel Comm and Travis Wright interview Jameson Lopp, a Bitcoin expert and technologist, to discuss the importance of self-custody and securing Bitcoin. Lopp shares his journey into the crypto world and emphasizes the need for education and understanding in the space. They also explore the factors that could impact Bitcoin’s relevance and potential failure, as well as the significance of privacy and security in the cryptocurrency industry. Lopp introduces his company, Casa, which offers user-friendly, secure Bitcoin self-custody solutions. Overall, the conversation revolves around the growth of Bitcoin and its impact on the global economy.

CRYPTO EDUCATION:

• Lopp emphasizes the importance of investing in education about cryptocurrencies and recommends visiting his website, bitcoin.page, which offers a comprehensive collection of resources.
• He advises newcomers to the crypto space to avoid getting caught up in the hype and instead focus on learning the fundamentals.
• Lopp discusses the challenge of striking the right balance between security and convenience when it comes to self-custody.

BITCOIN’S RELEVANCE AND FAILURE:

• Lopp believes that Bitcoin’s biggest enemy is apathy, and the key to its success lies in the number of people who find value in it and actively work on maintaining and promoting its use.
• He acknowledges the potential challenges of a prolonged bear market and the loss of interest and engagement from the community, but remains hopeful about Bitcoin’s long-term viability.
• Lopp highlights that Bitcoin’s survival is unlikely to be affected by cataclysmic events, such as government opposition, as the decentralized nature of the network mitigates the impact of individual nation-states.
• He stresses the resilience of blockchain networks and the difficulty of completely killing them, even if the number of active participants decreases.

BUILDING SECURE SELF-CUSTODY:

• Lopp introduces Casa as a highly secure and user-friendly self-custody wallet that eliminates single points of failure.
• The company offers multisig solutions, including two of three and three of five multisig setups, to ensure robustness and resilience.
• Lopp explains the importance of having an inheritance plan in place, as self-custody requires individuals to take full responsibility for their assets and consider potential situations such as their own death or incapacity.

MAINSTREAM ADOPTION AND THE FUTURE:

• Lopp believes that Bitcoin is already somewhat mainstream, with millions of crypto owners in the United States alone, but acknowledges that there is still a long way to go.
• He predicts an increase in the adoption of Lightning Network and layer two solutions, enabling faster and more efficient transactions.
• Lopp suggests that the future adoption of Bitcoin may be influenced by the introduction of ETFs and other financial instruments that make it easier for institutional investors to participate.
• He remains cautious about on-chain functionalities and ordinal solutions, highlighting the potential scalability and data congestion issues they may face.