All trade in money is actually trade in a commodity which has been elevated to the role of money.
The best way to think of money is an a unit of measure. Bitcoin offers a pool of money that is fixed in supply, thus not given to inflation like a government or fractional reserve issued currency.
There is nothing in the protocol that prohibits large groups of people from utilizing it.
Therefore, it will primarily be used to launder money and purchase in the black market.
Most cash is tainted with drug residue, but this doesn't make that the primary use of cash.
A currancy with no government backing is no currency at all.
Governments took control of currencies so they could profit from the debasement thereof (taxation without the hassle of collections).
Currency with no government backing is the only form of currency that can function as a store of value over time.
“Currency with no government backing is the only form of currency that can function as a store of value over time.”
Sorry, but that is completely incorrect. Currency has always existed in almost any society that trades goods, even in the absence of government. There are many examples of such currencies, but wampum is the one people commonly know about.
In general, currency is any money that is freely circulated in daily commerce, and in general, useful money must be:
1. durable,
2. divisible,
3. convenient (or portable),
4. stable in value,
5. limited in quantity,
6. universally accepted, and
7. possesses a recognized unit of value.
Nowhere in those criteria is a “central bank” or “government backing” required.