Bitcoin Journal
A Round Economic system and the 4 Archetypes of Bitcoiners
A number of years in the past, I made an unlikely wager: to construct a Bitcoin round economic system within the coronary heart of a fishing village in Brazil’s Northeast. No enterprise capitalists, no “crypto,” no empty guarantees. Solely nodes, satoshis, in‑particular person schooling and loads of sidewalk conversations.
That’s how Praia Bitcoin Jericoacoara was born: a radical experiment in monetary sovereignty constructed with open supply instruments and toes within the sand.
In 4 years at Praia Bitcoin Jericoacoara, we turned a seaside city right into a residing Bitcoin classroom: We onboarded households, shopkeepers and road distributors; taught self‑custody in small teams; put in dependable Lightning routes and level‑of‑sale instruments; ran social applications paid in sats; and hosted meetups that made Bitcoin a part of each day life.
Dwelling on the Bitcoin customary, I started to see what is absolutely occurring on the technological edge.
In August 2025, I revealed 4 quick articles on X. Completely different in type and tone, they converged on the identical query: What position ought to Bitcoin play, and what position ought to we play in constructing it? They got here in fours:
- a discipline report on our work with the Bitcoin Group Financial institution in Jericoacoara
- a critique of bitcoin maximalism’s rigidity
- a diplomatic letter inviting Bhutan’s prime minister to contemplate the satoshi as a unit of account, and
- a public enchantment to maintain Bitcoin a peer‑to‑peer money system.
What they share is the need to align observe, principle, and a future‑going through imaginative and prescient.
Within the first piece, I shared the challenges and classes from an actual experiment: constructing a Bitcoin‑based mostly round economic system in Northeast Brazil. Impressed by Bitcoin Seashore in El Salvador, we rooted the Jericoacoara undertaking in schooling, inclusion and native infrastructure. We put in servers, onboarded retailers and neighbors, created social applications and sought institutional recognition as a Group Bitcoin Financial institution.
Constructing a Bitcoin Round Economic system in Jericoacoara
I’m deeply impressed by the progress of @BitcoinEkasi, the momentum of the #spedn motion throughout Africa, and the compelling journey of @orphansofuganda. These initiatives show that Bitcoin can function a real medium of… pic.twitter.com/KiGndjGZen
— Praia Bitcoin Brazil
(@BitcoinBeachBR) August 2, 2025
We had been rejected by the native authorities. Even within the face of the state’s authorized and political unpreparedness, we moved ahead with conviction. We consider that when Bitcoin is rooted in place, it may be greater than cash; it may be a instrument for group transformation. But authorities struggled to grasp this, and so they denied our request to register what would have been the primary Bitcoin group financial institution.
Within the second piece, I confronted an ideological rigidity inside the group itself. Maximalist rhetoric, which defends Bitcoin as the one reliable undertaking and treats the remainder of “crypto” as scams, had its historic position. It helped defend the integrity of the ecosystem, uncovered frauds and accelerated market maturation. However does it nonetheless serve the purpose of huge‑scale adoption? Does it assist talk Bitcoin’s worth to newcomers? I caught myself ignoring related technological options just because they had been exterior the maximalist bubble.
After revisiting the dialogue and studying each reply and quote, my conclusion was that different tasks find yourself serving as funnels, sandboxes or distribution channels that drive folks towards actual Bitcoin adoption. Stablecoins, altcoins, memecoins, and centralized cryptocurrencies are shifting towards Bitcoin, absorbing inflation and even serving to to determine the costs of different commodities. Maybe it’s time for a brand new posture: not abandoning rules, however embracing a Bitcoin that retains the concentrate on the essence whereas remaining prepared to have interaction with a world in fixed transformation, with skepticism and an open thoughts; by educating regulators that Bitcoin is the decentralized cryptocurrency and that every one different tasks are centralized cryptocurrencies.
Within the third piece, I took this imaginative and prescient into the diplomatic area. I wrote an open letter to Bhutan’s prime minister suggesting that the nation contemplate adopting the satoshi as its nationwide unit of account.
Open Letter to Dr. Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Bhutan
Your Excellency @tsheringtobgay,
It’s with deep respect and admiration that I write to you, recognizing Bhutan’s exceptional journey in preserving its sovereignty, cultural id, and dedication to Gross Nationwide… pic.twitter.com/2tuTgfzAQi— Praia Bitcoin Brazil
The proposal, extra symbolic than technical, had a transparent purpose: to think about how Bitcoin can interact with different improvement fashions that don’t rely on the IMF or the greenback and that respect native tradition and sovereignty. The response to the letter revealed one thing vital: even inside the Bitcoin ecosystem there are ideological lanes: conservatives, centrists and progressives, every making an attempt to interpret the protocol via a definite worldview.
This text is subsequently a degree of convergence. It ties collectively these three experiences (sensible, ideological and diplomatic) to suggest a contemporary have a look at what we’re actually making an attempt to construct. Greater than repeating dogmas, this second requires discernment. Greater than speaking about freedom, it’s time to observe it the place it’s most wanted — on the bottom, in our language, in our establishments and in {our relationships}.
Within the fourth piece, I distilled my open be aware to Bitcoin Core right into a easy level: maintain Bitcoin a peer‑to‑peer money system, not a generic knowledge host.
Good day @bitcoincoreorg,
We stay Bitcoin. We dedicate our lives to it, full time, nonstop. On the bottom, we work as a part of Bitcoin’s invisible group, typically with out salaries, just because we consider in its energy to repair cash and defend society from injustice and… pic.twitter.com/QLieljdVJn
— Praia Bitcoin Brazil
I argued that loosening default knowledge‑carrying settings invitations bloat, authorized threat and reputational injury, and requested builders to suppose in centuries, not launch cycles. I additionally famous that latest Core releases, v29 and v30, revisited how a lot additional knowledge transactions might carry by default. That lives on the technical fringe of the protocol — software program defaults, not the financial guidelines. Bitcoin is cash. Like a banknote you’ll be able to scribble on however not use to publish a ebook, transactions can embrace small notes however shouldn’t be hijacked for unrelated content material.
This context raised an even bigger query: What do we would like Bitcoin to be? The alternate made the fault traces clear: completely different teams love Bitcoin for various causes and settle for completely different commerce‑offs. Within the subsequent part, I title these lanes and present how they match collectively.
Watching Bitcoin Knots acquire visibility relative to Bitcoin Core, and listening to builders complain about its pull‑request course of, jogged my memory of the First Follower lesson. Knots is essentially maintained by a single developer.
Actions don’t scale as a result of a lone chief is sensible. They scale when early followers make participation seen and straightforward, decreasing social threat and exhibiting others precisely the right way to behave.
From contained in the business, spending numerous hours analyzing geopolitics and future tendencies, I started to see Bitcoiners in 4 predominant classes, with the extremes on either side clearly outlined so let’s break them down.
The 4 Archetypes of Bitcoin
Bitcoin Database, Coordination Builders
Core perception: Bitcoin is a impartial public report. It may coordinate folks and software program. Cash is one highly effective use, not the one one.
What they prioritize: Time‑stamps and proofs; public information; id attestations; new media on Bitcoin; social protocols like Nostr; constructing most options on higher layers so L1 stays steady.
What they get proper: They entice builders and new customers with contemporary concepts and on‑ramps. Extra experiments imply extra possibilities to search out lasting utility.
Dangers and blind spots: The highlight can drift away from cash. An excessive amount of nonmonetary knowledge can waste block house and invite controversy. New methods generally reintroduce trusted middlemen.
Perspective to Lightning: Open, when it helps apps really feel immediate. Additionally discover different rails. Hold L1 easy.
North Star checks: Helpful apps with actual customers; energetic builders; low, respectful footprint on L1.
Frequent examples: Casey Rodarmor and Ordinals; Muneeb Ali and Stacks; Burak and Ark analysis; Maxim Orlovsky and RGB; fiatjaf and Nostr; OpenTimestamps. (Be aware: that is illustrative, not endorsements.)
Tagline: “Bitcoin is a database.”
Bitcoin Central, Market Pragmatists
Core perception: Bitcoin is cash and an asset. Value and liquidity drive adoption at scale and assist fund safety and improvement.
What they prioritize: ETFs and treasuries; compliant on‑ramps and off‑ramps; deep, wholesome markets; schooling for buyers and establishments.
What they get proper: Liquidity brings the following wave of customers and pays for builders, mining and schooling.
Dangers and blind spots: Comfort custody and quick‑time period pondering. Distribution can focus in a number of massive arms.
Perspective to Lightning: Pragmatic. Use it when it helps attain extra folks.
North Star checks: Market depth and volumes; hashrate safety finances; ETF and retail participation.
Frequent examples: Michael Saylor; iShares and Constancy Bitcoin ETFs; market makers; on‑chain analysts. Edge Case: Excessive leverage and over‑reliance on company treasuries.
Tagline: “We…
