&gt; It is just a matter of tradeoffs.<p>Indeed.<p>&gt; It is easy to dismiss bitcoin when you are a citizen of 1st world country -- because you are insider and have full privileges<p>That is a very good point, and very easy for someone like me to lose sight of.  Nonetheless, I think the answer is not to hand over the final arbitration authority to an algorithm, but rather to design a system where there is an open market in trust.  Starting a bank should be as easy as starting a blog.  The trick is to come up with a system of checks and balances so that someone who runs a crooked bank can be immediately and unambiguously called out.