Bitcoin Family Lost Faith in Centralized Exchanges
Taihuttu family of the Netherlands came under the spotlight in 2017 when they sold all of their belongings, including their house, for acquiring Bitcoins.
Apart from selling their house, the family also sold out toys, clothing, and vehicles in return for Bitcoins. They did this because the digital asset has become quite the utility for many consumers in the country.
On 30th November, Didi Taihuttu, the man in charge of the family, told CNBC that they have lost their faith in centralized exchanges.
Didi stated that his family has decided to move $1 Million in crypto funds from centralized exchanges. He also suggested that the taken-out funds shall then be put into the custody of decentralized exchanges.
Family Concerned About FTX
The family has become concerned about what happened with FTX which happened to be the world’s leading centralized crypto trading platform.
While telling CNBC the reason for crypto funds moving, the Taihuttu family said that they cannot afford to lose their crypto funds.
They said their crypto funds are lying with centralized crypto exchanges, amongst them are crypto platforms such as Kraken and Bybit.
Didi said, “if one doesn’t opt to give Bitcoins to a decentralized exchange then the person enjoys full control over his Bitcoins”. He suggested that funds lying with decentralized exchanges are actually lying in the custody of the owner.
However, when funds are lying in the custody of a centralized exchange and the exchange collapses, then funds are gone.
At least with decentralized exchanges, the funds continue to remain in the wallet of the owner no matter what happens, explained Didi.
Didi told CNBC that he was talking from his own experience. He shared the story of when he was a member of Cryptopia (i.e. a centralized exchange) in 2017.
He explained that the centralized firm was hacked and unfortunately lost huge crypto funds. He told CNBC that he alone lost four units of his own Bitcoins because of the hack attack.
Didi said that from that day onwards, he is looking for alternatives where he can store his Bitcoins without any fears.
Taihuttu Comments on FTX
As regards FTX, the family had a common view. They said that FTX was promoted by a lot of influencers who were paid exorbitant money for promotion campaigns.
Without disclosing their overall crypto holding, the family told CNBC that they will be moving crypto funds amounting to $1 Million. Didi suggested that crypto funds would include Bitcoins, Ethereum, DOT, Litecoin, etc.
Taihuttu’s Views on Bitcoin
According to the Taihuttu family, FTX is the victim of the Bitcoin cycle which happens very often. The family explained that there is too much drama in the world that revolves around Bitcoin like Mt Gox, the ban on BTC mining, etc.
However, the whole family members were also unanimous in believing that Bitcoin hasn’t lost its worth. They claimed that against the crypto winter, Bitcoin has been able to hold its ground steady.
They are not too much concerned about Bitcoin’s future, said Didi.
Didi explained further that nobody, including them, had thought that the crypto market will ever face the ongoing crisis. He said that the whole world is facing an economic crunch, the financial crisis is there and then FTX’s collapse comes as a surprise.
At the end of the interview, Didi suggested that Bitcoin is doing perfectly well as it was designed to do. They would never lose their hope and confidence in Bitcoin.
What is important to realize here is that it is not a matter of a single-family being disappointed in cryptocurrencies but of many sellers.
The retail sector is the key to the mass adoption of cryptocurrencies in the entire world, especially for Bitcoin.
If these retailers end up losing their confidence and trust in cryptocurrencies, the industry may find it very difficult to survive the hard times.
The crypto industry needs to learn from FTX and ensure that the future of crypto is not thrown into darkness by such incidents.