The Promise of Bitcoin: The Future of Money and How It Can Work for You

by Bobby C Lee

A financial revolution is materializing before our eyes. The way individuals, organizations, and governments conduct transactions—from purchasing a book online to acquiring major corporations to delivering billions in financial aid—will look vastly different in the near future. Bitcoin is spearheading this revolution and may be the best investment opportunity of our time, yet most people have yet to understand its promise.

In this book, Bobby C. Lee, one of the earliest pioneers in the cryptocurrency space, debunks myths and dispels fears that surround Bitcoin, arguing that this rational, logical system is superior to traditional monetary systems. He cites signs of Bitcoin's widening a growing community of users worldwide and multiple initiatives for investing in and holding Bitcoin among major financial services organizations and institutional investors who control trillions in assets.

Lee offers a primer on the best strategies for investing in this digital currency, the value of which will only continue to grow. He discusses the pros and cons, and covers the complicated yet more profitable method of acquiring Bitcoin, mining. He offers predictions for the future, including price, trajectory, use, and participation in the larger economy—as well as developments in regulation, technology, business, and society.

Genres: Nonfiction, Economics, Money

Audible Audio

Published May 17, 2022

About the author

Bobby Lee is the Founder and CEO of Ballet, the cryptocurrency company behind the innovative REAL Series hardware wallet. This physical wallet was launched in 2019, as the world’s first ever non-electronic hardware wallet with multicurrency support, that requires no setup to use. Ballet aims to bring true global adoption to Bitcoin and cryptocurrency, by making it easy, safe, and reliable, for everyday people to store and manage their digital assets.

Previously, Mr. Lee was the Co-founder and CEO of BTCC (also known as BTCChina), the first bitcoin exchange to launch in China, in 2011. The company was subsequently acquired in early 2018 by an investment firm in Hong Kong.

Before BTCC, Mr. Lee was Vice President of Technology for Walmart's e-commerce business in China. Previously he was the CTO of SMG BesTV New Media, the largest IPTV operator in China with the most subscribers globally. He moved to Shanghai in 2007 and started off at EMC’s China Center of Excellence, as Director of Software Engineering, with responsibilities for Cloud Computing and Cloud Storage.

Mr. Lee started his career in Silicon Valley as a software engineer at Yahoo!, and led the development of the earliest online communities. He graduated from Stanford University with B.S. and M.S. degrees in Computer Science, and was a member of the Mayfield Fellows Program. He earned an EMBA degree from CEIBS in China.

Mr. Lee currently also serves on the board of Bitcoin Foundation, a non-profit organization that fosters the adoption of bitcoin globally. In his spare time, he enjoys traveling, photography, watching movies, and playing poker.

Reviews

[Thomas Maluck · Rating 1 out of 5]

The Promise of Bitcoin: The Future of (Your) Money and How It Can Work For (Someone Else)

[Mark Zamzam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Decently informative book on the ins and outs of Bitcoin. It gets a tad repetitive but all in all it’s educational

[Paige Gordon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can’t exactly put my finger on why I didn’t like this book as much as I was thinking I would, but for whatever reason it just didn’t hit me as hard as I was expecting. And it is not in the top 3 of books I would recommend for anyone wanting an introduction to Bitcoin. Nothing really wrong with it per se, I just think that there are much better options. I did however grab two super important ideas from it (a reminder of the permissionless facet of bitcoin and the view of how bitcoin/gold both are antithetical to some kind of central insurance like FDIC) and I don’t regret taking the time to read it. If you’re already orange pilled and have some free time, its a fine option. But if you’re looking for something to give to a newbie I’d suggest The Bitcoin Standard, Inventing Bitcoin, The Bullish Case for Bitcoin and Thank God for Bitcoin all before this one.

Favorite Quote: “What does it mean for Bitcoin to be permissionless? It means that, unlike many things in life, you do not need permission to participate in the Bitcoin ecosystem. You do not need
permission to mine bitcoin, to send bitcoin, to receive bitcoin, to invest in bitcoin, nor to write software to improve bitcoin. The beauty is that Bitcoin is completely in the open, and no one can
stop or prevent you from participating. “

[Ashley Connolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book and still don't totally understand bitcoin 🤨🤦🏻‍♀️

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author is a self-proclaimed Bitcoin evangelist and that viewpoint is front and center in this book. I was hoping for a more objective and informative discussion of the pros and cons. Instead, the author mentions the critiques of Bitcoin but rather than a clear discussion of why the benefits outweigh the risks, it devolves into mostly a “it’s good because I say/believe it is.” For example, he mentions numerous other types of cryptocurrency but dismisses them all as inferior without any explanation for why he believes that. Another example is his defense of Bitcoin against claims that it is used to facilitate criminal activity such as ransomware attacks by saying “cash is used for illegal activities, too; does that mean we should do away with cash?” While that is technically true, what makes cryptocurrency attractive to criminals is the ability to deal in it anonymously which he completely fails to address

On the other hand, if you’re already leaning in the same direction as the author and are just looking for a bit more validation, this book should get you there!

[Larry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok, the first half was good, the back half was like an Amway seminar ("those who leave now will miss a huge opportunity").

The author was a little casual in some examples/statements ("my Tesla causes nary a carbon ripple" - though the generators it needs for electricity do, "McDonald's costs for inputs to a burger haven't changed" except they have). Glossed over the competing coins ("Bitcoin is King... The end"). Would have liked to see props and cons of China that supposedly addressed some of bitcoins weaknesses. My biggest concern is the mining/transaction processing cost, not from electrical consumption (though that is a major red flag), but the dependency on a network. I had a brief foray into Bitcoin years ago and thinking about getting back in, but doing a little more research first.

[MARC DES ROSIERS · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very useful book to understand Bitcoin and cryptocurrency by an investor and evangelist. I still can't wrap my head on whether this is a giant Ponzi scheme or the future of money. To me, the environmental impact of Bitcoin mining is a showstopper. The author explains that Bitcoin is a currency and an investment fused together. A currency should be a stable unit of value (if only on real terms), so the investment component arises only from rising demand from new entrants. And after all these early adopters, are the new entrants the "dumb money" coming too late to the party? The author thinks not and forecasts Bitcoin to hit $1 Million in the next 20 years! I remain unconvinced and will keep my greed in check for now.

[Mark Skinner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Bobby for writing an informational book about the future of Bitcoin and digital currency, assets, and commodities. I enjoyed learning about the most important things in this space and enjoyed your enthusiasm for the first crypto stuff and you did a thorough job of covering the history of currency and many of the things that have gone and will impact the future as it unfolds.

I appreciate your sincerity in where you stand at this juncture in its infancy and how you come to evaluate how we should evaluate the rollout of this next phase of money and the most important things to consider and your honesty in your evaluation of what to consider. Look forward to reading more of your work and watch how you influence the areas you are operating.

[Michael Lauritsch · Rating 5 out of 5]

I met Bobby at the Bitcoin Conference in Nashville and was looking forward to reading this book. He carefully added in all details of pricing and gave historical context to each significant moment on the history of Bitcoin. Great go-to book to educate yourself more on Bitcoin even if you've been in the space for some time.

[Álvaro Montero Formoso · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book written about Bitcoin. It explains the basics, how it works, how you can buy, store and keep it safe. Extremely well written. He is extremely bullish on Bitcoin in the long term. Buy and HODL. 5 stars.

[Mardee Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent job describing Bitcoin and how it works and how it should blow up. Lots of repetitive info in chapters. I liked the first 3-4 chapters and then I started turning out from repetition. Did not get into the weeds enough for me either. This is really high level overview.

[Teegan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely a Bitcoin evangelist. Decent book for understanding Bitcoin but he’s unashamedly trying to sell you on it which I had to overlook a bit.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good overview of money in general and Bitcoin.

[Dan Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informative hype job. But helpful in understanding the fundamentals. I did skip some parts as it seemed unnecessary for my understanding the point he was making.