50 pagesCryptocurrencies are an extremely new and constantly changing technology that has been gaining tremendous amounts of popularity in the last several years. The underlying technology behind cryptocurrencies, blockchain, acts as a decentralized and distributed ledger for which it holds transaction information associated with the users of the network. This is beneficial to those who use these currencies because it allows for the network to be decentralized, transparent, and immutable. While for many, these benefits are very compelling, some argue that cryptocurrencies are simply a fad and do not possess a strong enough foundation to last into the future as our society changes. The aim of this thesis is to take this question head on, and assess the long-term viability of cryptocurrency, based on the underlying technology, the direction the industry is heading, public opinion, and many other factors. Additionally, this paper will explore the potential implications that would occur in our society as a result of a more widespread adoption of cryptocurrency. Based on all these factors, one outcome is certain for cryptocurrency; the future is unclear. Cryptocurrency is an extremely innovative and important technology with many undeniable benefits that come along with the technology, such as security, transparency, lack of centralized authority, and many more. However, it is simply too new of a technology with many uncertainties to be able to determine with absolute certainty whether it will last into the future or not, as the answer to this question is extremely nuanced with many factors that make it impossible to determine a straightforward answer
