Bitcoin Book Club Wednesday - Simon Dixon's Book. Part II w/ Laura.

Hi guys. My name is Laura! Welcome to Sobuka. Every Wednesday on this blog, myself or Sarah will provide you guys with a book review pertaining to the crypto market. We have titled this series, “Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency Book Review," here on Sobuka.

Here on this channel, we cover international cryptocurrency markets, so what best way to help educate people on what is going on is by looking at authors and experts in the cryptocurrency space who have a broad understanding of international markets, not only in the US but places like Latin America, Africa, Middle East, and the South Asian Pacific to include Australia.

This type of subject makes it a great fit for this channel. I will start with where I left off on Simon Dixon’s book from last week. If you have not seen part 1, you can find it under the YouTube channel or on Steemit. Or leave a comment below, and I or Nick will help you find it. Also below is a full transcript of Part I and II combined if you do not want to watch the video.

For Full YouTube Video: Click Here

"Bank to the Future: Protect Your Future Before Governments Go Bust" by Simon Dixon is a critical book which comments on the expected economic troubles that even the most strongest nations will face in the coming years. The author puts forward the fears of a future where no ones jobs or businesses will prove to be profitable as debt would take over completely and there would be no way of escape.

Simon Dixon tends to make the readers understand that they have to stop trusting the banks and start planning to become self-sufficient in raising money. They should know how, when and where to spend their money and be knowledgeable about its flow. In this regard, “The former investment banker” also launched his business “Bank to the Future (BTTF)” as “the world’s first “peer-to-peer” market to allow businesses to raise debt, equity or donations from consumers and investors in one place” (Hurley, 2012). The idea is to allow business owners to become able to raise money from one platform in many ways. The book is a great resource for people who want to invest in the future while living in the present.

The book has been written in the year 2012 and serves as a warning regarding the coming technologies and their influence on the world of business around commerce. There are “seven hugely disruptive technologies” which have been discussed specifically (Dixon, 2012). There are people who understand how deadly the effect of these technologies can be and are preparing beforehand to avoid financial disaster. Looking critically at the seven disruptive technologies is like looking into the future. They are expected to take the place of the human worker and also affect businesses. Thus, employees and business owners have to plan how they want to see themselves in the future not free from the influence of the seven technologies but intelligently using them for their benefit.

Simon Dixon has named the “seven hugely disruptive technologies” to be “the World Wide Web, digital money, the social networks, crowdfunding, person-to-person lending, micro-finance and the mobile smart phone” (Dixon, 2012). All of these technologies have become a household name in the present time and are also controlling the mechanism of the financial system of the world. The author has encouraged the readers to become used to these technologies and make the most from them. He has explained each technology, uses and disadvantages in detail in separate chapters in Part 2 of the book. The seven deadly technologies are interlinked and interdependent to a great extent. Simon Dixon has explained the technologies and also defined their relation to each other. This would have been important for any reader of the year 2012 as not many people were using the IT tools as independently as they are today.

The author has declared that one of the most profitable ways of investing in the future is to become free from the thought of being an employee at a firm and becoming a freelancer. The use of the internet and crowdfunding can enable a person to do so. They allow the users to also become debt free. Other debt free investment or economic choices come when people choose to work “as a contractor, as part of an outsourced team or as an entrepreneur” (Dixon, 2012). Related to these financial positions is “digital money” (Dixon, 2012). It is the ultimate source that will take the place of paper money and it somewhat has in the present time. According to the author, it is the most useful medium through which a person can earn. Investing or working online can take people to the doors of online money transactions which can be unlocked by the key of a simple email address. In the present times, though more information is required of an internet user so he or she can get access to their hard earned money. In all cases, the use of mobile banking is inevitable. The world of the internet has become more handy and people can use mobile to make important financial moves. Mobile banking is an important tool which was not present at the time this book was written but is related to the information given.

To build a reputation is all the more important according to Simon Dixon. There is huge competition in the world of finance. To stand out, self reliant people have to be very careful of their steps but also experiment on their abilities and skills. The author warns that no one should try to compete with brands without first building a reputation even if a large amount of money is flowing in.

It is important to note that digital money is mostly debt. It has been thought that there may be no use of banks with digital money which is completely wrong as they control the flow of money in this form too. Commercial banks create money through loans. What they have is unreal money. The real money has already been invested in something that the bank aims for. The process is known as “fractional-reserve banking” which allows the commercial banks to use money of their depositors in any way they want without giving the owners the slightest of knowledge (Dixon, 2012). This type of banking has been encouraging loan taking and debt for the past many years. Thus, what we see is that “97% of all money in our economy has been created as debt by a private bank” (Dixon, 2014).

Digital banking however has challenged the debt and loan making of commercial banks. It is simple and accessible to users from anywhere and at any time. Moreover, “Private banks can fail and indeed there are many cases in which they have done so should there ever be a scenario in which central banks issue digital currency” (Dhaliwal, 2016). Nevertheless, they have launched digital banking solutions for their customers and people are still using their services.

However, digital money has also paved way for internet scandals in which many online business owners are involved. Simon Dixon gives examples of such websites where hundreds of people interact for the profit of the website owner. Indirectly the author has explained how profitable website ownership was in the year 2012 and would become in the future.
The book presents the idea that Bitcoin can become the currency of the future and replace all other currencies. It is one currency which has been in use online for sometime now and many online channels has utilized it instead of local currencies. However, currencies like Bitcoin can damage the economy of developed countries while replacing the local currencies.

At the same time, the author asserts that the seven technologies and their related tools have empowered people and also given them the freedom of economy. He claimed that “the seven key technologies that will create unparalleled freedom and opportunity” which is true as many people in the present times have adopted to them and are earning without being led by superiors or bosses (Dixon, 2012). They do not need to be dependent of time and space as an internet connection, laptop or a smartphone can enable them to do business from anywhere in the world and at any time that suits them. However, with freedom comes responsibility and with the age of advancement have come many issues which pose a threat to the security of individuals and collectively owned businesses online.

Talking of freedom of the economy, the author discusses a very important point. He explains that the creation of money should not be in the hands of the banks alone as it is not profitable for the people at large. For making a debt free system, we can look up to the government so that it takes responsibility. However, “the political pressure to create ever growing quantities of currency” can cause economic disruption and failure (Dixon, 2012). In Dixon’s view, the matter of money creation should be given in the hands of an “independent monetary policy committee” which is only answerable to the parliament and is devoid of any external pressure (Dixon, 2012).

This is the way in which sustainable and just creation of money can take place. This is also the manner which can be adopted to create debt free money. It can in turn save people of the world from being in debt at all times and still depend on the banking system for their survival. The digital money platforms which are the seven technologies, are there to provide users with debt free money as the system is transparent. By all means the users are able to see how their money is created and travels through different channels. There is also very little space for fraud. If there is fraud, policies by the developed countries of the world have been developed as a counter.

Simon Dixon has discussed financial issues of the world caused by the banking system as it is not transparent and hides many things. He has also put forward solutions for the economic problems which are easy to adopt and are intelligently thought out in his book. "Bank to the Future" is such a critically acclaimed book and has been adopted for its timely warning of a future where people will be highly in debt and banks will rule. The book has been presented in a very reader, friendly manner and easy language describing the problems that the banks are creating for the economic world and the finances of employees and business owners. It has also guided the readers in the right direction so they can become independent and financially successful. Simon Dixon has proved to be a mentor and a revolutionist who has better ideas for the prosperity of individuals and others linked to them.

Alright ladies and gentlemen…That ends my review. Please come back and check us out next week as we go over another book. And do not forget the following: If you like this video, please give it a thumbs up. If you want to find more information like this, then please click the subscribe button. And lastly, if you want to see or hear from Simon Dixon, please go back to the end of Part 1 on YouTube where I have a link with him being interviewed by the the Bitcoin Meister. That interview is still pretty fresh as it taken 1 to 2 months ago. It’s a great interview following the end of that video. So feel free to check it out! Okay that’s all. And lastly, if you guys have any Bitcoin or cryptocurrency books that you want us to review here on Sobuka, please let us know so we can consider it. Have a great day guys! Click here to view part 1 of Laura's content on Steemit.

Nick is a content creator for Sobuka with a background in programming, information technology, finance and digital forensics. He shares interest in cryptocurrencies by reporting on International Affairs. You can find myself, B, Laura, and Sarah here on our respected schedules from time to time.

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Relevant Sources

[1]. Hurley, J. (2012). Richard Branson backs 'Bank to the Future'. Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 17 August 2017, from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/businessclub/9474501/Richard-Branson-backs-Bank-to-the-Future.html

[2]. Dixon, S. (2012). Bank to the Future: Protect your Future before Governments Go Bust. London: Searching Finance.

[3]. Dixon, S. (2014). Debt Traps – There is a reason why you should care…. Simon Dixon. Retrieved 17 August 2017, from http://www.simondixon.org/debt-traps-there-is-a-reason-why-you-should-care-2/2014/07/02/

[4]. Dhaliwal, S. (2016). Will Central Banks Launch Their Own Bitcoin?. The CoinTelegraph. Retrieved 17 August 2017, from https://cointelegraph.com/news/will-central-banks-launch-their-own-bitcoin

[5]. By Sobuka. 8/21/2017. Bitcoin Book Club Wednesday - Simon Dixon's Book Part I w/ Laura. https://steemit.com/bitcoin/@sobuka/bitcoin-book-review-wednesday-simon-dixon-s-book