This quote is essentially a commentary on the nature of value and investment. In simple terms, it suggests that any asset or investment that does not have inherent utility or purpose is essentially a Ponzi scheme. A Ponzi scheme is a fraudulent investing scam promising high rates of return with little risk to investors. The scheme leads victims to believe that profits are coming from legitimate business activity when in fact they are coming from payments made by newer investors.
The “store of value” in this quote refers to something that maintains its value over time. This could be a physical asset like gold or a digital one like Bitcoin. However, if this store of value does not have any practical use or cannot generate income or benefits in some way (the “utility” in the quote), then its value is essentially based on the belief that someone else will buy it for a higher price in the future. This is similar to a Ponzi scheme where the return on investment is not based on the profits of a legitimate business but rather on the money paid by new investors.
Applying this to today’s world, we could consider the example of cryptocurrency. Some people argue that Bitcoin, for example, is a store of value but lacks utility. It’s not widely accepted as a form of payment, and it doesn’t produce anything the way a company or a piece of real estate might. Therefore, according to the logic of the quote, Bitcoin might be compared to a Ponzi scheme because its value is largely based on the belief that someone else will buy it for more in the future.
In personal development, this idea could be applied to the concept of self-worth. If we consider self-worth as a store of value, then the utility could be seen as the tangible actions and contributions one makes. Without these, the perceived self-worth might be hollow, akin to a Ponzi scheme. Therefore, it’s important to not just have self-worth, but also to actively contribute and add value to the world in some way.
In both cases, the quote is a reminder that true value comes from utility and tangible benefits, not just from speculative future gains.
