One of the places I hate going into aside from hospitals is the bank. I do not feel comfortable transacting with tellers, much more discussing things with them. I feel like I am being judged and my financial capacity is always assessed. I feel anxious whenever I make deposits, withdrawals, and inquiries. Of course, I know that part of their standard operating procedure is to check bills and checks whether it is counterfeit or not, but I can't help but feel judged. I know, I'm over-reacting.
Especially when you live in a third-world country like the Philippines where the majority of the citizens are not properly oriented in financial literacy, much more in financial institutions, banks are considered establishments for the elite. Ask a random Filipino whether they have a savings account, and most likely you will get a negative response. We would rather save money on our piggy banks or bury our assets on the ground than have an institution safe keep our wealth if there's any.
But personally, no matter how uncomfortable I am with banks, it's the best thing we have to nothing. Good thing, mobile banking is now a thing. I no longer have to queue in banks to transact, sometimes my mobile phone can do the trick. Money transfers can be done in a breeze. Thank you, technology. Thank you, internet.
But still, I got a lot of issues with you, banks.
Very strict regulatory standards. Too many IDs to present, too many forms to submit, too stringent with erasures and corrections, even the strokes with signatures, really?
Very little interest for our savings. Many financial advisors I read online are saying that when you just leave your money in the bank, you just end up losing its value in many years because of inflation.
Then there's this joke: we entrust our hard-earned money to the banks but they cannot even trust us with their pens?
But Why Am I Talking About Banks?
There's this question that popped in my head recently: "How does it feel handing out money to bigwigs say our country leaders or local celebrities, or in our case here, to famous names such as @MarcDeMesel or @RogerVer or any other famous crypto personalities?" No matter my intention, of course, I cannot easily do that. I have to go through certain protocols and procedures. And there is no assurance that they will accept my fiat money even if I insist. They don't even know me!
But whenever I see @MarcDeMesel posting on noise.cash, I am amazed how many tips he receives from other users. In fact, his latest noise garnered $44 as of writing. It's from the collective tips of users who think what he is saying is commendable. Does it make a difference to his wealth? Of course not. But what I see here is the opportunity given by Bitcoin Cash through noise.cash and read.cash that we do not usually enjoy with our traditional banks.
Freedom and the Power of Participation
I feel thrilled when I tip some big names I get to know in noise.cash. It feels like I am putting into their pockets a penny for their ideas, without asking for their approval. "I like your idea, please take this as a token of appreciation!" It is empowering on my part because even as a random guy from the South East, I get to agree and reward some guy from the West for what he is saying.
When I do that, there are no strict regulatory bodies to go through. I don't have to queue in the bank, pay huge transaction fees for that minimal tip, wait hours for my transaction to get through, and ask for approval for my "act of generosity". All I have to do is to click on my tip. Alternatively, I can use chaintip.
I have read elsewhere that Bitcoin Cash is not supposed to make us rich, but to make us free. Indeed, what we experience in tipping others - no matter the distance from us, social status, race, religion, or gender, is freedom. The earnings we get from read.cash and noise.cash is helpful, of course, but more than the monetary benefits, we also get a foretaste of freedom that is prohibited by our traditional financial systems.
I'm not saying that we should do away with our traditional banks. What I'm saying is the times are changing, and we should be ready to adapt.
Other Ruminations on Bitcoin Cash:
Hi, I am Marts! I am a writer, and aside from my stint here in read.cash, I also have my own blog - martsvalenzuela.com. I appreciate it if you pay me a visit! I plan on growing my readership as I learn to improve my craft and journey towards my passion to write and publish books that add value to people.
Nice