The face of Bitcoin is changing. What was once an internet-native currency embraced by cypherpunks, open-source advocates, and outsiders is now being accumulated by some of the wealthiest institutions on the planet. From BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF to sovereign wealth funds quietly stacking Bitcoin, it’s clear: the rich and powerful have entered the chat.
To many progressives—and to ordinary people skeptical of another “asset for the elites”—this shift feels like betrayal. If Bitcoin was meant to be a tool of liberation, why is it now lining the portfolios of billionaires? If Wall Street is hoarding it, doesn’t that mean they’re just using it to get richer, once again leaving the rest of us behind?
These are valid concerns. But they don’t tell the full story.
At The Progressive Bitcoiner, we believe Bitcoin can still be a tool for economic justice—even in an age when the richest are buying in. Here are five reasons why:
1. Bitcoin Is Neutral—But That Doesn’t Mean It’s Powerless
Bitcoin is open-source, borderless, and permissionless. It does not discriminate. Anyone with an internet or cellphone connection can use it. This means that while Wall Street can accumulate Bitcoin, they can’t gatekeep it.
You don’t need a brokerage account, a credit score, or a relationship with a bank to hold or use Bitcoin. And no one—no government, no bank, no billionaire—can freeze your funds or inflate away their value once you hold them.
That’s revolutionary.
2. The Playing Field Isn’t Level—But Bitcoin Levels Some of It
In today’s system, the wealthy get access to the best financial tools, lowest interest rates, and fastest opportunities to grow wealth. Meanwhile, ordinary people lose purchasing power year after year, stuck in a system that rewards proximity to power.
Bitcoin doesn’t fix inequality overnight. But it gives the rest of us access to the same monetary asset as the one-percent—something that’s never been possible before.
When you hold Bitcoin, you’re holding the same asset as Wall Street. That’s not defeat—that’s economic empowerment never seen before.
3. Bitcoin Is Still a Lifeline for the Marginalized
Let’s not forget: in many parts of the world, Bitcoin isn’t a hedge—it’s a necessity.
People living under authoritarian regimes use Bitcoin to escape capital controls and survive currency collapse. Activists and journalists rely on it when bank accounts are frozen. Domestic abuse survivors have used it to escape financial dependence. The unbanked and underbanked in the U.S. are finding new ways to save and send money using Bitcoin, often for the first time without predatory fees.
These are not theoretical benefits. They are real, ongoing use cases that prove Bitcoin’s value to the vulnerable.
4. Wall Street Can Accumulate Bitcoin—But They Can’t Own the Narrative
If we cede the story of Bitcoin to BlackRock and billionaires, then yes—Bitcoin becomes just another tool of wealth extraction.
But that’s not the whole story. Bitcoin’s origins are rooted in mistrust of centralized financial power. Its community is still full of builders, educators, and advocates who care about privacy, autonomy, and justice. People like us. People like you.
We don’t have to let the elite define what Bitcoin means. We can define it ourselves.
5. Progressive Values Have a Place in Bitcoin—Now More Than Ever
Yes, we should be honest about Bitcoin’s changing landscape. But we should also be clear-eyed about the opportunity this presents.
If Wall Street is buying Bitcoin, they’re validating its long-term value. If progressives can help shape how that value is used—by fighting for privacy rights, inclusive access, better savings and prosperity for everyday people, and social good—then Bitcoin remains a tool worth advocating for.
We’re not here to stop the rich from buying Bitcoin. We can’t. We’re here to ensure it’s not only for them.
Bitcoin for the people is still possible. But it won’t happen by accident. It will happen because people like you care enough to keep fighting for it.
And at The Progressive Bitcoiner, we’ll be here doing just that. Join us.
Trey Walsh is a fervent progressive and Bitcoin advocate, with an extensive background in the nonprofit sector, leading initiatives aimed at workforce development and poverty alleviation. His journey into the world of Bitcoin was sparked by its potential to advance human rights and social justice.
