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RE: Where does the money come from? A look into the economics of Steem.
I disagree about the "no real user base for bitcoin part". A huge part of the rise in price for BTC has been demand in china, russia, and other countries with both repressive governments and a growing entrepreneurial class. In most of these countries, a successful business person's money being stolen directly out of a state run bank by government functionaries is the norm, not the exception.
I can't speak about China, but I have no idea where this idea that an "oppressive government" steals money from people's bank accounts in Russia comes from. While Russia has some serious "rule of law" and "fair application of law" issues, it is not a kleptocracy. There is a burgeoning middle class in Russia and a significant human capital investment in the Tech Industry. These people tend to meet 2 of the typical crypto currency enthusiast's characteristics: Libertarian Views and Forward Looking Decentralized/Blockchain Systems. Additionally, Russian retail investors are looking for a way to get returns on their investments in the same way as Americans and they see cryptocurrency as a potential vehicle especially when Westerners jump in and drive prices up for them.