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Topic: Why bitcoin trading is not a zero sum game (Read 810 times)

full member
Activity: 504
Merit: 102
October 17, 2017, 10:51:05 PM
#9
No, it is not a zero sum game. In that sense, if we have a crash in its price, we could have a negative sum game too.
There could be people buying at the peak and losing all their money. Miners who make losses because the value of bitcoins they mine is insufficient to cover their costs...
Actually they are doing there best they know that you can make a goal so they give you some of them to try such like gambling games there are many sites which gives extra bonus of bitcoin.
full member
Activity: 268
Merit: 100
October 08, 2017, 09:56:16 PM
#8
It's not really zero sum game per se. But from my point of view some people lose money while others gain from those loses and vice versa. But it will not equate to zero once everything is accounted. It's already too big for that with all the investments, sources and market swings. So, you can say it's a non-zero-sum game.
legendary
Activity: 1232
Merit: 1000
October 08, 2017, 01:34:19 PM
#7
No, it is not a zero sum game. In that sense, if we have a crash in its price, we could have a negative sum game too.
There could be people buying at the peak and losing all their money. Miners who make losses because the value of bitcoins they mine is insufficient to cover their costs...
legendary
Activity: 1918
Merit: 1759
October 08, 2017, 01:18:38 PM
#6
There are miners that sell their bitcoins, its like they are sucking money out of the market.

Wait. How can you say selling of Bitcoin pull out the money from market. Money never gets out of market, it is always the user who goes out. Whenever someone sells, other person buy on opposite end. Thus the person of buying and selling go on hand-to-hand.

Quote
There are people that are paid in bitcoin for jobs, signature selling and stuff. Where is the "other side" of their gains?

The other side of their gain is the expense of companies which pay them for advertising. This is utility cost for companies and on the basis of this cost, companies are able to raise millions in ICO.

Do tell me if you balance sheet got matched now or not. Cheesy
legendary
Activity: 3038
Merit: 2162
October 08, 2017, 01:11:18 PM
#5
Simply speaking: bitcoin trades platforms  are not a closed system.

There are people that buy to hodl it forever, in hope to become billionaires one day(it is like money thrown in the market but never out).

There are people that exchanges bitcoins for others cryptos, or other cryptos for bitcoins. Some never revert their moves, some brings back more when they are back, some brings more less(like I did when I tried to mess with altcoins).

There are lost coins, for any reason(lost private keys, owner convicted to life imprisonment, owner dead, etc...).

There is in fact wealth generated by bitcoin economy, like gambling sites, service sites, jobs, money from advertising, silk road sellings, etc. We all know that an economy where wealth is created is not a zero sum economy.

There are miners that sell their bitcoins, its like they are sucking money out of the market.

There are people that are paid in bitcoin for jobs, signature selling and stuff. Where is the "other side" of their gains?

If you are thinking about USD value of Bitcoin trading, than you can be right, if Bitcoin value will keep growing, which seems like the most likely outcome, than even those traders who have suffered loses would still be in profit as long as they hodl enough Bitcoin to cover their USD loses. But since they have lost some of their coins, they have missed an opportunity to have more value in the future. So, Bitcoin trading is zero sum in terms of amounts of Bitcoins - for someone to get more Bitcoins via trading, other should lose some of their coins by selling at the wrong time. In general, this means that you should hodl some Bitcoin for long term instead of trading with all your BTC portfolio.
legendary
Activity: 3206
Merit: 1348
October 08, 2017, 12:57:53 PM
#4
In order for something to be a zero sum game one has to win while the other one loses. In truth no kind of trading is really a zero sum game. If a person buys shares in a company and the shares go up, everyone wins. The exchange are just facilitating the trade so there's no real lost. The only thing you could suggest is a possible opportunity cost for new traders buying in at the new price.
legendary
Activity: 2408
Merit: 1009
Legen -wait for it- dary
October 08, 2017, 09:34:32 AM
#3
Bitcoin in and of itself is not a zero sum game, no. Trading is because two parties take opposing sides of a trade (even if they are making a single trade to sell and leave, it is still a trade and there was still potential for further profits or losses). One wins and one loses. If I buy from you, and BTC price rises, I make the profits you are missing out on. If price goes down, I am losing money that you are still holding on to. In the end, someone has to lose for someone else to profit. Simple as that. Everyone cannot profit. If that were the case, no one would sell, and by default, no one could be buying to raise the price. Stagnation.
newbie
Activity: 56
Merit: 0
October 08, 2017, 04:34:06 AM
#2
No. It's not a zero sum game
hero member
Activity: 616
Merit: 500
Simply speaking: bitcoin trades platforms  are not a closed system.

There are people that buy to hodl it forever, in hope to become billionaires one day(it is like money thrown in the market but never out).

There are people that exchanges bitcoins for others cryptos, or other cryptos for bitcoins. Some never revert their moves, some brings back more when they are back, some brings more less(like I did when I tried to mess with altcoins).

There are lost coins, for any reason(lost private keys, owner convicted to life imprisonment, owner dead, etc...).

There is in fact wealth generated by bitcoin economy, like gambling sites, service sites, jobs, money from advertising, silk road sellings, etc. We all know that an economy where wealth is created is not a zero sum economy.

There are miners that sell their bitcoins, its like they are sucking money out of the market.

There are people that are paid in bitcoin for jobs, signature selling and stuff. Where is the "other side" of their gains?
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