Legendary Bitcoiner Debunks Paper Bitcoin, Sparks Discussion on the Phenomenon

Adam Back took to social media to debunk claims about paper bitcoin, stating that large institutions are taking delivery of their purchases with custodians. However, a discussion ensued, with some claiming that this phenomenon is real and that there are billions of fake BTC in the market.

Adam Back Debunks Paper Bitcoin: Is It Fake?

The issue of paper bitcoin, referring to the existence of synthetic bitcoin that exists outside the 21 million onchain limit, has been gradually gaining attention lately. Some bitcoiners point to the presence of this fake bitcoin as a reason for the relative stability of the price, despite rising demand from institutions that purchase thousands of BTC each week.

Adam Back, a legendary cypherpunk who designed Hashcash, a precursor to Bitcoin’s proof-of-work consensus, moved to social media to try to debunk the notion that this is a real phenomenon.

Back stated:

Billions of btc buying price stuck in $100-110k “must be paper bitcoin selling” here’s another paper debunk. the guys buying big ticket amounts of btc are taking delivery: storing with custodians.

Furthermore, Back doubled down on his rejection of the paper bitcoin issue, stressing that it would be hard to hide all that excess bitcoin.

Nonetheless, Lawrence Lepard, author of “The Big Print” and investment manager, differed from Back’s opinion, stating that there was indeed paper bitcoin in the market. In response to Back’s post, he declared:

It is not hidden. Binance shows $12b of perpetual futures outstanding and worldwide ChatGPT says $30B. That is a lot of paper Bitcoin and that figure has grown rapidly (I monitor it).

Allegations of this phenomenon have intensified on social media this month, as bitcoiners claim that the current bullish state of the market should have driven bitcoin prices much higher. Back has consistently debunked this theory, repeatedly calling for evidence of such occurrences and an explanation of the processes that could lead to concealing so much fake BTC in today’s dynamic market.

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