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Nobel Prize winner Paul Krugman complained on Twitter Wednesday that he was having problems with centralized payment processor Venmo. His tweet was followed by a spate of bitcoin advocates who insisted that Krugman now recognizes the importance of a censorship-resistant payment system.
Krugman’s Experience Highlights Growing Interest in Censorship Resistant Payment Systems
Nobel Prize winner and author Paul Krugman, who famously wrote in 1998 that “by 2005 or so, it will become clear that the impact of the Internet on the economy is no greater than that of a fax machine,” had issues with third-party payment providers. On Wednesday, Krugman announced on Twitter that he was busy but needed to explain the situation.
“Too busy to tweet. But not to vent,” Krugman said. “I’ve been using Venmo for years, but now it won’t allow me to make payments. I spent a long time chatting with reps, and they told me they couldn’t explain why — or fix it. The software has taken control.”
Paul Krugman attended the Keynesian school of economics and has long been a skeptic of bitcoin. He was quickly criticized by some bitcoin advocates, including Michael Saylor of Microstrategy, who insist that “Bitcoin fixes this.”
Even one Twitter user quoted Krugman, asked, “What exactly [bitcoin] supposed to do the things most of us haven’t done?” In the past, the economist has compared the cryptocurrency market to the subprime mortgage crash and is noted for his skepticism of bitcoin.
Krugman expressed his frustration with Venmo on Twitter, and the thread quickly filled with comments about bitcoin. Despite numerous statements, economists do not respond to crypto enthusiasts. One individual quoted of the bitcoin white paper, says “Try a pure peer-to-peer version of electronic money that allows online payments to be sent directly from one party to another without going through a financial institution.”
Shortly after Krugman’s first tweet, the economist explained that his tweet helped solve his problems with Venmo. “And tweeting got results. A rep called and it looks like we’ll be up again,” Krugman notified His 4.5 million social media followers. Krugman’s experience with Venmo isn’t unique, as billionaire Mark Mobius recently detailed his own difficulties getting funding out of HSBC China. The Mobius issue was also criticized by bitcoin enthusiasts, who pointed out that he should understand the importance of censorship-resistant money like bitcoin.
What do you think of Paul Krugman’s Venmo issue and the criticism he has received from bitcoin advocates for his views on cryptocurrencies? Share your thoughts on this in the comments section below.
Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, WikiCommons
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