Without Drugs, What's the Point of Bitcoin?

The trial of Ross Ulbricht, which began last week in Manhattan, doesn't lack for entertainment value. The 30-year-old is accused of founding and administering Silk Road, an online market that allowed users to buy and sell illegal drugs using bitcoin as currency currency. Founded in 2011, prosecutors allege that Silk Road generated $1.2 billion in revenue—including an estimated $80 million paid in commissions—until the FBI shut it down in 2013. Ulbricht has pled not guilty. But whatever the verdict, the legacy of Ulbricht's high-profile case may strike a blow against Bitcoin's future viability.