Tech and Banking Giants Ditch Bitcoin for Their Own Blockchain
&quot;Ditching&quot; Bitcoin?  Wouldn&#x27;t that imply that they had previously adopted Bitcoin to some meaningful extent?<p>Bitcoin is merely proof of concept for the underlying technology.  I expect that there will be many more offshoots in the future, beyond the pieces used by the existing banking system.  But I won&#x27;t really care about any of them, until one of them allows me to work, buy, and sell without being forced to trust any third party that I find to be intrinsically untrustworthy--including governments, banks, cartel enforcers, mobsters, miner brigades, and Anonymous.<p>Not there yet.  This isn&#x27;t even a step in that direction.<p>But what I do like about this is that it <i>may have the potential</i> to simplify mutual insurance, interbank settlement, and securities exchanges.  It would be nice if the funds from an electronic transfer to my spouse could be made available faster than writing out a paper check and depositing it at a branch ATM.  I would also be particularly interested if it could end certain semi-fraudulent practices, such as short positions that are not appropriately matched against a long counterparty, or speculative phantom commodities contracts that are never actually redeemed by delivery.