Bitcoin, the hot topic of the 20’s, has hundreds of thousands of people feeling like they missed the boat (even though the asset class is only 10 years old). A lot of people who feel like they missed the boat, but still want to cash in on the opportunity, ask the question ‘What is the next Bitcoin?’, and this is a logical question to ask if you think you’re late to the party, however, it can be a tricky question to answer, let me explain…

The Bitcoin-internet analogy has become cliche at this point, but it works, so I’m going to use it (sorry); imagine you were able to invest directly into the internet in the 90’s, rather than websites and internet companies, and suppose you only became aware of the importance of the internet in the middle of the ‘dot com boom’ (where internet companies stock prices skyrocketed), and further, let’s imagine that you, thinking you had missed out on the internet, decided to wait around for ‘the next internet’, you may never have invested, because the internet was the next internet.

The internet is an ever-changing technology, always having improvements and new protocols introduced, but here’s the kicker; the same applies to Bitcoin.

Bitcoin is not a finished product, it’s a constant work in progress, developers/coders around the world are always finding new ways to improve Bitcoin, and submitting Bitcoin Improvement Proposals (BIP’s) for the users of the Bitcoin network to vote on, and collectively decide whether or not they want to implement the BIP.

For example; BIP 0112. This Bitcoin Improvement Proposal allowed for the introduction of what’s called the Lightning Network. Although the Lightning network is not without its uncertainties given it’s youth, it allows for the the Transactions Per Second (TPS) of Bitcoin to increase from 7, to potentially hundreds of thousands of transactions every second (compared to PayPal’s average 193 TPS), this is a major improvement, and changes the landscape for Bitcoin, permanently.

Because of this improvement on the Bitcoin network, along with help from Jack Mallers at Strike, Bitcoin is to officially be recognised as ‘legal tender’ in El Salvador through the use of Lightning network, meaning that the country of El Salvador will be officially and legally recognising Bitcoin as money, coming into effect on September the 7th 2021.

So yes, the next Bitcoin has been found, and it is Bitcoin.

The room that Satoshi Nakamoto left in the Bitcoin protocol, for completely democratic updating and changing of itself, is a testament to the genius of the inventor, and puts important economic and monetary policy decisions in the hands of the people, rather than a couple of old men in a boardroom.

This is why Bitcoin wins in the end.

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