Bitcoin: The Trust Anchor in a Sea of Blockchains

Bitcoin advocates often distill trustlessness as meaning "You don't have to trust anyone", but this is an oversimplified perspective.

Bitcoin advocates often simplify it as "No one has the power to reverse the blockchain's history" though a nuanced view has caveats similar to those involving trustlessness.

As bitcoin becomes more mainstream, the social consensus around what bitcoin should be may change.

If this occurs, we may not see the libertarians turn on bitcoin so much as bitcoin turn on the libertarians.

Also anchor to bitcoin to facilitate completely new blockchains that have their value cryptographically linked to bitcoin.

Is going to anchor to bitcoin as a sidechain via a hybrid two-way peg.

Is a bitcoin sidechain that enables faster, private settlement between bitcoin exchanges.

It makes more sense for many institutions to build their own blockchains rather than leaving low-level development in the hands of the bitcoin developers.

The immutability of the settlement layer of bitcoin has value for these institutions, but they may find little value in bitcoin's other properties.

Bitcoin can be the "One chain to rule them all" while simultaneously fostering a diverse array of blockchains.