Bitcoin Solved Digital Scarcity. But It Has a Privacy Problem w/ Max Hillebrand

🎧 WATCH ON FOUNTAIN.FM & EARN SATS! ⚡ This episode PREMIERES FIRST on Fountain — earn sats while you listen. 🧠 Support independent podcasts. Escape the algorithm. 👉 Listen & subscribe here: https://tinyurl.com/yck8u6sa 🇸🇻 SUPPORT THE SHOW 🎧⚡ 🟦 Blockstream Jade – Secure, self-custody Bitcoin hardware wallet. 🔐 Use promo code BITCORNERPODCAST for 10% off: 👉🏼 https://rewards.blockstream.com/bitcornerpodcast 🟠 Bitcoin Conference 2026 – The world’s biggest Bitcoin event returns to Las Vegas. 🎫 Use code BITCORNER 👉 https://tickets.b.tc/event/bitcoin-2026 🐂 Bull Bitcoin – Buy Bitcoin directly into self-custody. No banks. No middlemen. 👉 https://app.bullbitcoin.com/registration/bitcornerpodcast 🎯 EPISODE THESIS What does privacy have to do with economics? And what happens when you combine Austrian economics, cypherpunk technology, and Bitcoin? In this episode of BitCorner Podcast, Max Hillebrand — Austrian economist, cypherpunk, privacy engineer, and author of The Praxeology of Privacy — joins us for a deep conversation about human action, privacy, money, and freedom. We explore why privacy isn't simply about “having something to hide,” but a fundamental part of being able to act freely. Max explains how surveillance can distort economic behavior, why Bitcoin’s digital scarcity matters, the risks surrounding manipulation and censorship, and the difficult engineering trade-offs involved in developing an open monetary network. We also discuss: • Austrian economics and the lessons of El Salvador’s Bitcoin experiment • Why privacy follows naturally from praxeology and human action • How surveillance can distort prices, incentives, and economic decisions • Bitcoin as digital base money • The difference between Bitcoin and money substitutes built on top of it • Whether Bitcoin can be manipulated despite its decentralized architecture • Censorship, spam, block space, and Bitcoin development • The trade-offs involved in changing Bitcoin’s rules • The future of Satoshi’s coins • Bitcoin scaling and the challenges ahead • Cypherpunk technology and the broader freedom stack • Why economics and privacy technology need to be understood together • The philosophical foundations behind The Praxeology of Privacy This is not simply a conversation about Bitcoin privacy. It is a conversation about human freedom — and whether individuals can continue to control their money, information, and choices in a world where observation and financial control are becoming increasingly powerful. Bitcoin solved something extraordinary: digital scarcity without a trusted third party. But what does that mean for privacy, sovereignty, and human action? ⏱️ CHAPTERS 0:00 Bitcoin as an engineered system 0:59 Austrian economics and the Salvadoran experiment 10:12 Privacy as a necessity through praxeology 24:06 Manipulation risks and base money nature 30:27 Censorship, spam and Bitcoin development 38:28 The future of Satoshi's coins and Bitcoin scaling 50:18 Reflections on El Salvador and closing thoughts 📖 MAX'S BOOK The Praxeology of Privacy by Max Hillebrand. The book connects Austrian economics, human action, privacy, and the technology developed by the cypherpunk movement. 👤 CONNECT 🎙️ Max Hillebrand Austrian economist, cypherpunk & privacy engineer. Juan / BitCorner Website: https://bitcornershow.framer.ai/ 📸 Instagram: @bitcorner_official 🐦 Twitter/X: https://x.com/BitCornerPod 📧 Email: bitcornerpodcast@proton.me 📲 SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST 🎧 Fountain: https://tinyurl.com/yck8u6sa 🎵 Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/bdcsyy4u 🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://tinyurl.com/cj5wkhxv 🎬 Rumble: https://tinyurl.com/3bc6bvtn 📺 YouTube: /@bitcornerpodcast <h1 id="bitcoinprivacycypherpunkaustrianeconomicsbitcoinprivacyselfcustodyfreedomelsalvadorbitco