Voorhees vs Schiff: Bull Meets Bear at NY Bitcoin Debate

A debate between an infamous bitcoin detractor and one of the cryptocurrency's most well-known entrepreneurs made sparks fly in New York City Monday.

Hosted by the Soho Forum, a monthly Manhattan debate series, the event saw Erik Voorhees, the CEO of exchange service ShapeShift, argue that government-backed monies will eventually be replaced by bitcoin and blockchain innovations.

Perhaps most damningly, he argued people are not currently buying into bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies to use them; they're here to get rich, he said.

Even people who do plan to use bitcoin cannot do so easily.

Schiff pointed out that the price of a bitcoin can change hour-to-hour, which makes it difficult for people to price goods or negotiate contracts using the cryptocurrency.

"What are the odds that bitcoin's the best cryptocurrency that's ever going to be invented? Nobody's come up with a better gold," Schiff remarked.

"Well, the government can absolutely outlaw bitcoin. More easily ," Voorhees said.

Elsewhere, Voorhees also conceded that bitcoin might not succeed in meeting all of the four classic functions of money.

In response to Schiff's argument that the market is solely propelled by speculation, Voorhees noted that bitcoin can be used in cross-border transactions, is censorship-resistant and has a limited supply.

People transacting in bitcoin are also free of many of the restrictions seen in traditional financial institutions, including the fact that people cannot send wire transfers outside a bank's business hours.