Are you sick of hearing about cryptocurrency yet? Don’t worry, we are too. But it’s important to set the record straight about what exactly crypto does and does not do, given the endless stream of overblown claims about its liberating power — and the immense amounts of money involved. Strip away the hype, and it’s clear that crypto is just another speculative asset that means big profits for a few and pain for the many.

In a recent interview on The Dig, a Jacobin Radio podcast, host Daniel Denvir spoke with Edward Ongweso Jr, a tech reporter at Vice Motherboard and a cohost of the podcast This Machine Kills, and Jacob Silverman, a staff writer at the New Republic. Together, they answer the question of why cryptocurrency holds so much appeal despite its crassly profiteering nature. The transcript has been edited for length and clarity. Listen to the full interview here.