You just can't bifurcate bitcoin currency from the technology. Bitcoin will always need a monetary base.

We are very excited about the use of blockchain, whether it's Bitcoin or not, but we are as enthusiastic as ever about Bitcoin as a global currency and, really more importantly, Bitcoin as a global financial rail.

As the platform and protocol become more ingrained in society, get built into products and services, and basically become more of the mesh of society, just like the Internet, companies and people will need to own Bitcoin to play on its rails.

Bitcoin is one of the most viral concepts I've ever encountered.

To be a more efficient, faster, and cheaper way to send money around the world, you have to be able to get in and out of Bitcoin. You need to have a liquid exchange on either end of the corridor.

Essentially, if you decide to sell a widget using BitPay, and you sell the widget for $100, in Bitcoin you get $100. And so it doesn't matter what the price does the next minute or the next hour.