What Are Privacy Coins, And Why Are They Gaining In Popularity

Privacy coins like Monero, Dash, and Haven have enjoyed substantial boosts in popularity recently. Given recent struggles on both geopolitical and domestic fronts, and governments who have begun to place more regulatory scrutiny on cryptocurrency, the move is with merit.

Why? 

Because crypto investors have begun to realize a move to independent, privacy-based cryptocurrencies puts control back into their hands. 

With the stability and privacy of certain private finance (PriFi) coins such as Haven, or the privacy of other coins such as Monero, investors have started to look at these tokens as options to help navigate the fallout and volatility of these tumultuous times we’re living through.

The future, it seems, is gravitating towards an increased movement of funds from traditional cryptos to privacy focused tokens. 

Here’s a deep dive on why.

Growing Instability In The Geopolitical Landscape 

The situation that surrounds the complexities of war is not in question. War is never something that either side ultimately wins, as lives are lost, communities are displaced, and difficulty is felt in multiple ways.

As an example, with the recent outbreak of war in Ukraine, various countries and companies are now increasingly imposing an unprecedented number of sanctions on Russia following their military operations on Ukrainian soil. 

This has led to a catastrophic economic impact for the average Russian, as witnessed through the desperate run to the banks to withdraw their money, and the blockage of average businesses from the SWIFT network. 

Likewise too is the difficulty felt on the Ukrainian side. As citizens flee war-torn areas, restricted or depleted supplies of cash and goods limit average citizens’ ability to move or purchase goods as needed.

This type of situation shows us just how quickly and powerfully regulatory bodies and companies can move to eliminate parties from the financial system, and just how fragile the traditional system of fiat currency truly is.

Closer To Home

If you think that you are disconnected and safe from what’s happening on the other side of the globe – think again. 

Human tragedies like war, poverty and the rise in authoritarianism are events that happen across borders but affect everyone in a broad sweeping sense.

As an example, the Canadian government recently demonstrated what lengths they were willing to go to, in order to acquire compliance when they invoked the Emergencies Act during the anti-lockdown peaceful protests. 

We saw the suspension of the demonstrators’ bank accounts, and the sanctioning of 34 cryptocurrency wallets by centralized cryptocurrency exchanges and trading partners. Essentially, the Emergency Act allowed the government and corporate partners to freeze or suspend accounts tied to the truckers without due process, a court order, or a fair trial to prove guilt. 

This sets a dangerous precedent.

This danger is amplified by the technology on which digital currencies rests – blockchain technology – which maintains financial transaction records forever, and allows anyone with the technical know-how to cross correlate data to expose your personal information.

It is one of the reasons why governments around the world are so interested in creating their own digital currencies.

Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs)

A CBDC refers to a digital currency issued by the central bank of a country, such as the Federal Reserve in the United States. The CBDC aims to include financial transparency (to regulatory bodies), provenance, and will leverage the immutability of blockchain technology with the  stability of a stablecoin. 

There is only one very large issue with it. The government will literally hold the keys to your wallet, and have insight into everything that you spend your cryptocurrency on.

Already implemented in China, it’s no secret that the United Kingdom has been giving serious thought to the implementation of a CBDC of their own. Implementing this would give them strong insights and access to the economic lives and decision making of their citizens, which is a direct contravention of their natural human right to privacy. 

The Central Bank of Mexico is planning to launch theirs in 2024, and other countries, including Canada and the United States, have been tinkering with the idea as well.

As shared earlier we have seen Western democratic leader’s actions tilted towards an ultimate political agenda of centralized control and power. When combined with aspects like a social credit score, or the ability to see all of your financial transactions, the potential for financial lockdown or control is unprecedented. 

Fortunately, as more and more people have begun to recognize this, they have started the hunt for alternatives in privacy coins that will ensure their financial assets are protected from controlled actions such as the freezing of accounts. 

The freedom to transact in a PriFi manner is where the crypto industry is headed.

Privacy For A Better Future

We are in the midst of a transitional phase toward a better world of great technological possibilities. Privacy coins and PriFi, in general, are a catalyst for this transition.

When it comes to financial privacy, it’s becoming a recognizable fact that privacy coins have picked up where other cryptocurrencies have fallen short. People have begun to understand the value of their financial assets as regulatory bodies, corporate entities, and growing tensions in the domestic and geopolitical landscape have exposed the fragility of both the digital and traditional financial systems. 

PriFi options like Monero and the Haven Protocol represent secure and private options for people who want to stabilize their crypto-financial lives, protect their money from instabilities caused by domestic and geopolitical events, or who want to retain financial control over their ability to transact.   

This is the new era of financial privacy the world needs right now. This is the new era of financial privacy the crypto space needs right now. Smart crypto investors have seen the writing on the wall, and have started to adopt an option that will help protect them in the future. 

Have you?

If you’re interested in learning more about the relationship between financial freedom, privacy, and cryptocurrency, research PriFi online, or join communities like Haven’s to learn more.

Author bio:

Harlequin

Once Harlequin discovered crypto in 2014, the question ‘what is money’ took hold and Harlequin became fascinated by the possibilities of decentralizing trust. Working in the tech industry, it was clear to Harlequin that we all have very little privacy in the digital world. Harlequin wanted to change this. Upon discovering Haven, these two passions collided and the concept of a private stablecoin ecosystem immediately made sense. If you’re interested in joining the conversation and learning more about PriFi stablecoins, you can learn more by going here: https://havenprotocol.org/