Bitcoin Debate's Defeated Bear: Digitized Gold 'Only Type of Crypto That Can Succeed'

American stock broker Peter Schiff "Technically lost" to ShapeShift CEO and crypto commentator Erik Voorhees in a 'Bitcoin Debate' at the SoHo Forum July 2.

The two financial thought leaders debated about the top cryptocurrency Bitcoin and its underlying technology blockchain, questioning the potential for mass adoption, and comparing Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies with other asset types such as fiat money and gold.

Voorhees, the Bitcoin bull of the debate, claimed that Bitcoin will eventually become a substitute for state-backed money, while government structures would be reorganized using blockchain technology.

"Bitcoin will win because there is now competition in money, and Bitcoin is the best money currently available. Because it's decentralized, it cannot be stopped."

Defending Bitcoin bear position, gold investor and financial commentator Schiff argued that Bitcoin is not going to succeed in the future and work as substitute for fiat money since it is not backed by anything except the "Confidence" of buyers, which is mostly driven by speculation.

Schiff argued that gold does not have to compete with any other asset, including Bitcoin, which is "Replicating all of the properties of gold, except the most important one - the metal itself." Schiff's argument for why gold is valuable as an element is based on the fact that it is rate and "Has been valued as a commodity for thousands of years."

"It has no real value into itself as a commodity, there is no way to relate the price of Bitcoin to the price of anything else."

"Now there are fifteen hundred or so cryptocurrencies that can do everything Bitcoin can do. Some of them can do it better, faster cheaper. There is no limit to the number of other digital currencies that can be created."

Schiff agreed with Voorhees about the weaknesses of the existing fiat monetary system, claiming that it is "Not going to work." However, the investor argued that Bitcoin "Is not an improvement," saying that it is still a "Speculative asset" that people buy into in hopes of earning more fiat money.

At another debate in New York in April, U.S. venture capital investor and Bitcoin supporter Tim Draper argued that Bitcoin is "Bigger than the internet," as well as a number of other major developments in human history.