Bitcoin could address the cash savings crisis in Hong Kong and India

With Hong Kong facing a shortage of cash due to defunct ATMs and the crash of PMC Bank in India leaving almost a million people without access to their accounts, Bitcoin could emerge as the savior of those facing financial crises.

Crisis in Hong Kong and India show how fragile cash savings are.

The four-month-long protests in Hong Kong, which began after the city's legislative council proposed a controversial extradition bill, has now hit critical mass as citizens fight to remain free of mainland rule.

The proposed bill would allow Hong Kong to extradite its citizens to mainland China, opening the way for greater control from China's central government.

What began as a peaceful protest four months ago turned into a violent riot after Hong Kong passed an emergency regulations ordinance-a colonial-era law that allows the government to "Make any regulations whatsoever." The enactment of what is effectively martial law wasn't what primarily bothered protesters, it was the government's ability to freeze assets and take control of foreign assets.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority said that more than 10 percent of 3,300 ATMs in the city were damaged and 5 percent have run out of money.

What those protesting against capital controls on their PMC accounts in India and those fighting China's interference in Hong Kong have in common is the loss of financial freedom.

This aspect of Bitcoin just became important for 1+ billion people in India & Hong Kong.

Data from CoinDance showed that the people of Hong Kong began to take Bitcoin more seriously.

Bitcoin's weekly trading volume in Hong Kong Dollars reached its all-time high at the end of September, reaching almost 12.3 million HKD. While it's still unclear whether the spike in Bitcoin trading was correlated to the protests, the world's largest cryptocurrency is certainly becoming more popular in places in financial and political turmoil.