In this video, Business Insider UK asks Cambridge Judge Business School Research Fellow Garrick Hileman if Bitcoin could become a mainstream currency. Garrick is well-known for his research on cryptocurrencies and their underlying blockchain technology. He was one of the first academically-trained economists to focus on these topics.
Hileman characterizes Bitcoin as more of an asset than a currency, citing its popular description as "digital gold." He suggests crypto-asset as a more accurate term than cryptocurrency.
Right now, he says Bitcoin is not a very viable currency because of high fees - up to $20 per transaction. Hileman conveys that Bitcoin's boom in popularity increases the chance of it becoming a mainstream currency, if the transaction fee dilemma can be solved. But, he adds, "The volatility of Bitcoin is another thing that could maybe prevent it from becoming a widely-used currency."
