Just how decentralized are cryptocurrencies?

5 min read

“I’ll tell you another story that is underreported, but worth paying attention to. Bitcoin is really controlled by China. There are four miners in China that control over 50% of Bitcoin.” When Brad Garlinghouse made this recent assertion, it seems he was referring to China’s disproportionate accumulation of Bitcoin mining power. The Ripple CEO highlights an issue that continues to be fervently debated in the crypto community – namely, that despite decentralization being a core principle of cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin – and indeed, many of the biggest cryptocurrency projects – continue to exhibit some degree of centralization, in one form or…...

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Shashank Pattekar Financial markets professional turned FinTech enthusiast, Shashank has a passion for exploring the possibilities of disruption in this new, tech-informed era of finance. After several years working in London's financial services sector, including stints with investment banks Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch, he opted in 2013 to switch to a more location-independent career. In the process, he developed a keen interest in writing about contemporary subjects including FinTech and blockchain, alongside more traditional topics related to finance, economics and current affairs. Shashank has also been an advisor to a new London FinTech firm, and has worked on a number of global blockchain projects, mainly in financial, marketing and advisory capacities. Shashank can be reached at [email protected]