Before I share on the topic, allow me share an insight. If you're a Bitcoiner, sorry but I am going to question the status quo preached by the Bitcoin community.
Bitcoiners normally say no other cryptocurrecy can be decentralized because the founders are still alive, or around to interfere with their creations. Dr. Saifedean Ammous has at least shared this sentiment on Lex Fridman's podcast.
Today, clarity shone through on this issue. For a cryptocurrency to be decentralized what matters is that a sufficient number of self-sovereign people run the core software which they have ensured have no backdoors leading back to a central PC (of the crypto founders). For example, if adoption had happened so that one month later, enough people had been running the core software, then even Satoshi's presence would not have been enough to interfere with the self-sovereignty he had sowed in his followers - the OG Bitcoiners.
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Now onto the topic. Indeed, Bitcoin transaction volume could hit close to absolute zero if we lose enough BTC for people to notice. At least, as far as plebs / common folk are concerned. I wouldn't care so much about BTC if only big companies or governments could trade it.
Losing coins implies the few coins left become really scarce. So at some point, plebs are going to get uncomfortable.
It seems Satoshi's warnings are more of premonitions.
But what would such an event mean? What would Bitcoiners do about a diminishing transaction volume?
Is Bitcoin doomed?
To be continued ...