Why we are adding crypto trading to our list

Addiction Economy Thought for Today - looks like we will be adding Crypto to our list of Addiction Economy industries.

Not sure quite how we overlooked this one, it fits perfectly into our Economic Model of Addiction (more to come) and the definition of addiction we are using from the NHS “Addiction is defined as not having control over doing, taking or using something to the point where it could be harmful to you”.

Crypto has similar addictive properties to gambling, particularly the fast-paced intermittent variable rewards and other features designed into the software which make digital gambling and slot machines so addictive; together with no limits to expenditure and a socialisation through groups on social media. A lot of the features of crypto are banned in gambling.

I'm a bit behind, but there are plans to regulate it like a financial service, to bring it under closer scrutiny of regulators, though others, including Treasury Committee chair Harriett Baldwin, suggest that because it has 'no intrinsic value, huge price volatility and no discernible social good' and it uses similar product and marketing tactics it is more like gambling and should be regulated as such. Though the Gambling Commission has less funding to enforce than the FCA, so that is a problem for some too, so perhaps dual regulation, also there is the Advertising Standards Authority involved in false claims. Fascinating.

An excellent article paywalled here in the FT describes the experience of Crypto traders at a Scottish rehab Centre for addicts.

“I was seeing crypto more as an investment, so in my head I wasn’t gambling at first . . . but I don’t think it really works like that,” said one.

Crypto addicts describe their experience “as any gambler would describe their gambling addiction”, said Anthony Marini, Castle Craig’s senior specialist therapist. “So, for me, should it be regulated as gambling? Absolutely.”

“The three impacts we see from gambling are on mental health, finances and on relationships. In crypto trading, what we’re seeing is exactly the same,” said Anna Hemmings, chief executive officer of gambling support organisation GamCare.


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We'd better get researching this one too. Busy busy!



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