Nobel laureate Paul Krugman complained on Twitter Wednesday that he was experiencing problems with Venmo, a centralized payment processor. His tweet was flooded with bitcoin supporters, who claimed that Krugman realized the importance of a payment system that is resistant to censorship.
Krugman’s experience shows a growing interest in censorship-resistant payment systems
Nobel laureate and author Paul Krugman, who famously wrote in 1998 that “by 2005 or so, it will be clear that the Internet has had no greater impact on the economy than the fax machine,” has run into problems with third-party payment providers. On Wednesday, Krugman announced on Twitter that he was busy but needed to explain the situation.
“Too busy to tweet. but not to diverge,” Krugmansaid. “I’ve used Venmo for years and now I can’t pay them. I spent a long time chatting with the reps and they said they can’t explain why or fix it. The software is in control.”
Paul Krugman, in the fashion of Keynesian economics, has long been skeptical of Bitcoin. He was quickly criticized by some bitcoin supporters, including Microstrategy’s Michael Saylor, whoclaimed “bitcoin will fix this.”
One Twitter user evenquotedKrugman asked, “Exactly what is (Bitcoin) supposed to do that we are already doing so little of?” He asked. In the past, the economist has likened the cryptocurrency market to the subprime mortgage crash and is well known for his skepticism about bitcoin.
Krugman expressed his dissatisfaction with Venmo on Twitter, and the thread was soon filled with comments about bitcoin. Despite his numerous statements, the economist did not respond to crypto fans. One individual,quotedfrom the Bitcoin White Paperand said, “Try a pure peer-to-peer version of electronic money that allows online payments to be sent directly from one party to another without going through a financial institution.”
Shortly after Krugman’s first tweet, the economist explained that his tweet helped him solve the problem with Venmo.” And the tweet got results. A rep called me and it looks like it’s working again,” Krugman told his 4.5 million social media followers. Krugman’s experience with Venmo is not unique, as billionaire Mark Mobius recently detailed his own difficulties in withdrawing funds from HSBC China. Mobius’ problems were criticized by Bitcoin enthusiasts, who pointed out that he should understand the importance of a censorship-resistant currency like Bitcoin.
What are your thoughts on Paul Krugman’s Venmo issue and the criticism he has received from Bitcoin supporters over his views on cryptocurrencies? Share your thoughts on this subject in the comments section below.
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