By now, most of us are at least vaguely aware of cryptocurrency — if not from the glut of Super Bowl ads early this year or incessant media coverage, then perhaps from our acquaintances, one in five of whom had reportedly invested in crypto by March 2022. Cryptocurrencies (and there are many) are virtual currencies that aren’t maintained by an external authority like a central bank but are instead secured digitally, in a ledger called a blockchain.

The Left (and everyone else) has plenty of reasons to view cryptocurrencies as little more than speculative assets that function like a Ponzi scheme, rewarding early adopters and relying on the constant recruitment of new investors to fuel their gains. Su Zhu and Kyle Davies have gone missing after their crypto hedge fund, Three Arrows Capital, wasted away in bankruptcy, and liquidators are currently brainstorming alternate ways to serve them subpoenas. The Securities and Exchange Commission has taken aim at crypto’s celebrity endorsers and influencers, most notably Kim Kardashian, who received a $1.26 million fine in early October for illegally posting about EthereumMAX. It’s easy to respond to any pro-crypto argument with a simple observation: many of crypto’s most prominent supporters are now facing legal action.

These newsy items, though, don’t necessarily clarify whether crypto is fraudulent at its core or whether its fraudulent applications have merely been the most public ones. If it’s the latter, is there an avenue for the Left to reclaim it?