{"id":25414,"date":"2025-07-18T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-07-18T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/1-btc-1-btc-meme-or-cryptos-cardinal-truth\/"},"modified":"2025-07-18T12:00:00","modified_gmt":"2025-07-18T09:00:00","slug":"1-btc-1-btc-meme-or-cryptos-cardinal-truth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/1-btc-1-btc-meme-or-cryptos-cardinal-truth\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201c1 BTC = 1 BTC\u201d: meme or crypto\u2019s cardinal truth?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Only when you live with the take &#8216;one bitcoin equals one bitcoin&#8217; side by side every day do you begin to exist, and then to develop, in the only global economic free zone \u2014 the &#8216;crypto offshore&#8217;.&#8221;\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>So says Web3 researcher Vladimir Menaskop, who spoke to ForkLog. He kindly agreed to accompany the author down the little-charted paths of the popular thesis \u201c1 BTC = 1 BTC\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>This article traces how the formula emerged and what it means, compares the first cryptocurrency with cocoa beans, and examines how manipulation through information and grand rhetoric can influence investors and enthusiasts.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A narrative in its infancy<\/h2>\n<p>On February 23, 2019, bitcoin evangelist and Riot Platforms vice-president Pierre Rochard published a chart asserting the identity of one bitcoin with itself \u2014 \u201c1 BTC = 1 BTC\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>The tautology baffled many in the community and, six years on, still generates frequent misunderstanding thanks to its many facets. In some cases it has even become a tool for manipulation through distorted readings.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">This is the ideal stablecoin and store of value. <\/p>\n<p>You may not like it, but this is what peak sound money looks like. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/xZ5HrzGN6x\">pic.twitter.com\/xZ5HrzGN6x<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Bitcoin is Saving (@BitcoinIsSaving) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BitcoinIsSaving\/status\/1099373733901463552?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 23, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>JAN3 CEO Samson Mow weighed in on Rochard\u2019s thread. The head of the bitcoin-infrastructure company linked the claim to the cap on issuance of the first cryptocurrency at 21,000,000 BTC. He noted, however, that a deflationary mechanism alone is not enough to create sound money \u2014 money that can preserve purchasing power over time. Despite the shortcomings, he added, this characteristic enables \u201cdigital gold\u201d to measure \u201cother things\u201d too.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Bitsika founder Atsu Davo argued that Rochard\u2019s chart was inaccurate because not all coins had been mined by 2013. Therefore, the relative value of 1 BTC would diminish over time until mining stops \u2014 only then would the statement become accurate.<\/p>\n<p>When the money supply is fixed, prices of things depend on demand and on how scarce they appear \u2014 the unit of account itself stays stable. But if the money supply expands, goods prices begin to \u201cfloat\u201d because the very base of measurement changes.<\/p>\n<p>Put differently, the value of goods should be adjusted for growth in the money supply. For example, the price of buckwheat or lobster in bitcoin rests on a constant \u2014 BTC\u2019s capped supply \u2014 rather than on a fickle variable such as the US dollar.<\/p>\n<p>While a capped currency supply does not by itself guarantee \u201csound money\u201d, it can soften the effects of inflation and even forestall it.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u201cOurs\u201d \u2014 what does not belong to us<\/h2>\n<p>In 2019, during Web3\u2019s formative phase, many struggled to grasp the breadth of the \u201c1 BTC = 1 BTC\u201d thesis. The crypto market was in the throes of a slump that lasted more than a year and a half. Along with the hopes of early crypto traders and short-term investors, the price of digital gold plunged from about $20,000 to roughly $3,500.<\/p>\n<p>For those taking a more systematic, global view, the crypto winter prompted a reappraisal of virtual assets\u2019 value, especially that of their flagbearer. The settled \u201ctautology\u201d became a foundation for an interdisciplinary view of the system and for building robust <span data-descr=\"fear of missing out\" class=\"old_tooltip\">FOMO<\/span> filters.<\/p>\n<p>In search of clarity we turned to Web3 researcher Vladimir Menaskop. In 2021 he <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=abZe4mfC8YE\">highlighted<\/a> ten core principles underpinning the notion \u201c1 BTC = 1 BTC\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>He suggested focusing on three aspects that may help weather the next crypto winter, when institutional appetites will likely grow.<\/p>\n<p>In his words, the thesis \u201c1 BTC = 1 BTC\u201d is neither a mantra nor a meme, but \u201cthe whole essence, the essence and even the existence of Web 3.0 and Web3 as an ideology\u201d. It is reflected in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.activism.net\/cypherpunk\/manifesto.html\">Cypherpunk Manifesto<\/a>, which speaks of privacy \u2014 transmitting the minimum possible amount of information needed solely to complete a transaction:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>\u201cThis information \u2014 and, more precisely, the value being transmitted \u2014 is one bitcoin, or any part of it. This approach is the first attempt to transmit value over a network. That is how the paradigm breaks. Today only a few are starting to realise that you do not have to sell 1 BTC to use it. It follows that bitcoin is the reserve currency.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>According to the expert, the thesis also channels the white paper of the first cryptocurrency and the concept of digital cash \u2014 indeed, \u201cthe first truly decentralised digital money\u201d.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>\u201cHave 1 BTC \u2014 have cash. It\u2019s easy to verify now: I pledged some bitcoin by wrapping it, then pledged the wrapper and borrowed against it. If everything is done safely and correctly, then I still have 1 BTC, yet it has given me a means of payment,\u201d<\/em> he explained.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Here an axiological aspect emerges, one that excludes the consumer morality in which \u201cours\u201d is whatever we possess. The thesis says something else: \u201cours\u201d is what does not belong to us:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>\u201cHerein lies the greatness of Laszlo Hanyecz\u2019s <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/cryptocurrency-community-celebrates-bitcoin-pizza-day-once-again\"><em>deed<\/em><\/a><em>: he gave away tens of thousands of coins not just for a few pizzas, but so that the world would take note that the first cryptocurrency is value transmitted within (any) network \u2014 an asset that can and should be shared.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bitcoin\u2019s basket of goods\u00a0<\/h2>\n<p>In July 2025, bitcoin\u2019s market capitalisation <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/bitcoin-surpasses-canadas-gdp-and-amazons-market-capitalization\">overtook<\/a> the GDP of Canada and Brazil; digital gold became more valuable than Amazon and silver.<\/p>\n<p>While the asset remains tightly yoked to fiat exchange rates, its \u201cto the moon\u201d moves are easy to flaunt amid the dollar index\u2019s slide. Yet even within that frame, brisker trends are often missed.<\/p>\n<p>In 2024 the first cryptocurrency gained more than 170%. It is likely that only long-term investors and seasoned crypto traders booked such numbers. Their strategies almost always include strict risk management and portfolio hedging.<\/p>\n<p>Given the high volatility of digital assets, it may help to keep trading accounts separate from those used for traditional securities. Just look at the goods in a nearby coffee shop \u2014 and how their prices moved over the same period.<\/p>\n<p>In 2024, cocoa prices jumped by about 200%.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lh7-qw.googleusercontent.com\/docsz\/AD_4nXe93mjH2AepJmGxEyblO2i-G_wYZHVaFHXjf3svAPAxEsqtzqKPZfxwRM76OuFaaK21eYFksoechQIakkaAy4XzrF9DPwuvnEMAxi2-Pn7CfsSntnfXvKkjlns3JNYkkdyscoPoHA?key=ojNmsq90wtpprnlFlGCJtQ\" alt=\"\u201c1 BTC = 1 BTC\u201d: meme or crypto\u2019s cardinal truth?\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Chart of cocoa futures prices in 2024\u20132025. Data: <a href=\"https:\/\/finviz.com\/futures_charts.ashx?p=d&#038;t=CC\">Finviz<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Over the same span, coffee rose by more than 120%.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lh7-qw.googleusercontent.com\/docsz\/AD_4nXf3zEBgfBy7s2eZNm3fnu9uZvxOCE7Bkd2v8i0T07mR8smPHyJRPaiYGGTTJwqa3aoL455A3zOi2nLF9unZxhrqoJ7sTIXEkYCCJwJtcT3dgMrlmZ8mgCoZWwfIw-ig1bo2QLJ3JQ?key=ojNmsq90wtpprnlFlGCJtQ\" alt=\"\u201c1 BTC = 1 BTC\u201d: meme or crypto\u2019s cardinal truth?\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Chart of coffee futures prices since 2024. Data: <a href=\"https:\/\/finviz.com\/futures_charts.ashx?p=d&#038;t=KC\">Finviz<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Orange juice, now in a recovery phase, climbed by roughly 80% over the same period.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lh7-qw.googleusercontent.com\/docsz\/AD_4nXfVhka3ydn4yMXrbcpb7WqU9fh4K7MXnhV28gE8cwcIrvsNbpfL8ryeMf1zRDHsdYE1jvnI3WpErA0V8pVi9x_i0hln9lCUZ44MCqVIBcAz9tSpHqvlW6bRTe_-cb3B3V575VJvOA?key=ojNmsq90wtpprnlFlGCJtQ\" alt=\"\u201c1 BTC = 1 BTC\u201d: meme or crypto\u2019s cardinal truth?\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Chart of orange juice futures prices. Data: <a href=\"https:\/\/finviz.com\/futures_charts.ashx?p=d&#038;t=JO\">Finviz<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>A narrow field of view makes it harder to build a safer future \u2014 one in which price and value are diametrically opposed characteristics.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>\u201cOnly when you live with the take &#8216;one bitcoin equals one bitcoin&#8217; side by side every day do you begin to exist, and then to develop, in the only global economic free zone \u2014 the &#8216;crypto offshore&#8217;. Inside it there are breakthroughs that may happen once in 100, or even 1,000 years. Be it the use of AI agents and smart contracts or <\/em><em>ZKP<\/em><em> \u2018miracles\u2019,\u201d Menaskop believes.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A money-pulative search<\/h2>\n<p>Compare bitcoin\u2019s price chart with the frequency of mentions of \u201c1 BTC = 1 BTC\u201d, and a curious correlation emerges.<\/p>\n<p>According to <a href=\"https:\/\/trends.google.com\/trends\/\">Google Trends<\/a>, over the past five years, across various iterations of the phrase (\u201c1 BTC \u2014 1 BTC\u201d, \u201c1 BTC equals 1 BTC\u201d, \u201c1 bitcoin \u2014 1 bitcoin\u201d, \u201c1 BTC \u0440\u0430\u0432\u0435\u043d 1 BTC\u201d, \u201c\u043e\u0434\u0438\u043d \u0431\u0438\u0442\u043a\u043e\u0438\u043d \u0440\u0430\u0432\u0435\u043d \u043e\u0434\u043d\u043e\u043c\u0443 \u0431\u0438\u0442\u043a\u043e\u0438\u043d\u0443\u201d), roughly 66% of peaks coincided with bitcoin\u2019s rallies. The remaining ~34% appeared at moments of reversals toward a bull market and possible breakouts through seller resistance.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lh7-qw.googleusercontent.com\/docsz\/AD_4nXeT6B6NPy8-U_Lmdksu7_Ai13lZuGFKCN7H18NQ224DpxFNl2DoqmzwfbVZg-z8jWk6EG1cvP93uqB0a9GLOWdh76BcS-Bi6Rx8zvHbcOjXkL-dnGIg4kcbj-hR6tktJNzNoo7o?key=ojNmsq90wtpprnlFlGCJtQ\" alt=\"\u201c1 BTC = 1 BTC\u201d: meme or crypto\u2019s cardinal truth?\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Chart of the frequency of mentions of \u201c1 BTC = 1 BTC\u201d and its analogues versus BTC\/USDT on Binance. Data: <a href=\"https:\/\/ru.tradingview.com\/\">TradingView<\/a> \/ ForkLog.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>As bitcoin set new highs, the query rose in search. The coincidence is unsurprising: in times of hype, people look more often at cryptocurrencies. Having read or heard the formula, users sought a clear explanation. Where search led them shaped what happened next. For newcomers \u2014 as in any industry \u2014 low-quality content abounds, worse when it is \u201ceducational\u201d. Ambiguous interpretations can dramatically influence decisions, for instance leading to a portfolio of digital gold amassed at peak prices.<\/p>\n<p>In that sense, the \u201c1 BTC = 1 BTC\u201d concept can serve as a kind of signal in the information space, triggering a cognitive chain: if the asset is stable in itself, you can lean on it.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>\u201cAs for the distortion of information, the brightest example for me \u2014 and one believed by the overwhelming majority even inside crypto (999 out of 1,000) \u2014 is <\/em><em>ICO<\/em><em>. Big media chant like a mantra that 80\u201390% of ICOs were scams. Yet all the data are open, and a meta-analysis showed that actual fraud was only 16.5% by the median \u2014 less than in the <span data-descr=\"venture capital\" class=\"old_tooltip\">VC<\/span> segment or in bank business lending,\u201d<\/em> Menaskop said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>It is also telling where interest in the phrase sprang up. Using different spellings of bitcoin\u2019s identity, Google recorded search spikes in various countries. Most often they were in <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/technological-ambitions-in-environmental-hell\">Bangladesh<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/just-add-water-pakistan-between-a-crypto-dream-and-hard-reality\">Pakistan<\/a>, Nigeria, India, Indonesia and Turkey. Activity in regions with unstable economies and hard living conditions may indicate a desire to escape a financial vacuum through cryptocurrencies. In countries rife with bot farms, it may also point to an \u201cinvisible hand\u201d nudging people to buy.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>\u201cThat shilling marketing uses poor countries to flood traffic over everything in crypto is not just a fact but a given. At different times these were Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, Indonesia and other states. Perhaps this all peaked in the tap-to-earn era, when insane traffic in the hundreds of millions converted far below not percentages but fractions of a percent. There is no decentralisation in such approaches,\u201d<\/em> the researcher noted.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Menaskop also pointed to a positive side:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>\u201cThe poor, earning like bots for the rich, begin to understand that they are not actually earning but losing money. In the end they themselves become drop hunters, mid-level <\/em><em>DeFi<\/em><em> users. In many jurisdictions, crypto thus becomes a normal means of payment and of international transfers. You can clearly see this in practice in Argentina, Nigeria and even China.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>He also suggested recalling the recent airdrops \u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/what-makes-berachains-modular-blockchain-tick-and-is-an-airdrop-likely\">Berachain<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/blast-l2-project-concludes-airdrop-of-its-token\">Blast<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/scroll-network-unveils-airdrop-criteria\">Scroll<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/zksync-metrics-decline-following-airdrop\">ZKsync<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/starknet-initiates-strk-token-claim-and-lists-on-major-exchanges\">Starknet<\/a> \u2014 and looking at the statistics before and after. To the expert it is obvious that <span data-descr=\"total value locked\" class=\"old_tooltip\">TVL<\/span> and other network metrics are inflated by bots. Menaskop calls it \u201cjumping liquidity\u201d, which typically ranges between $0.5bn and $1.5bn:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em>\u201cBut on the other hand, the small percentage that ultimately settles in the cryptosphere turns out to matter far more than all those bots and their owners. That is why it is worth talking to everyone about the value of one bitcoin, and not only about its price, which always was, is and will be just a derivative.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Only when you live with the take &#8216;one bitcoin equals one bitcoin&#8217; side by side every day do you begin to exist, and then to develop, in the only global economic free zone \u2014 the &#8216;crypto offshore&#8217;.&#8221;\u00a0 So says Web3 researcher Vladimir Menaskop, who spoke to ForkLog. He kindly agreed to accompany the author down [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":25413,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"select":"","news_style_id":"","cryptorium_level":"","_short_excerpt_text":"","creation_source":"","_metatest_mainpost_news_update":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1144],"tags":[480,1138,1110],"class_list":["post-25414","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-longreads","tag-bitcoin-price","tag-opinions","tag-web-3-0"],"aioseo_notices":[],"amp_enabled":true,"views":"112","promo_type":"","layout_type":"","short_excerpt":"","is_update":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25414","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25414"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25414\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25413"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25414"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25414"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25414"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}