Crypto enthusiasts misunderstand what a financial system/financial architecture is. It is not the fiat currencies themselves, but rather the power architecture that controls and oversees value and exchange in whatever form it takes. Crypto has been entirely subsumed into this architecture through the exchanges which are obviously beholden to the holders of real power, i.e. governments.

This is to say, the stated goal and the target of the crypto enthusiasts are misaligned. To transcend the institutions represented by the fiat system requires far more than creating some alternative "currency", rather it requires creating an entirely new power structure.

As soon as you have an entirely new power structure you have a new government.

Different people may be on top, with different aims (...arguable, but let's pretend.)

But there will always be a government of some sort making the big decisions for the benefit of its ruling clique.

This seems like pure projection on your part.

and any attempt to avoid government oversight simply hits a wall of being illegal

see monero getting outlawed by EU countries

Who are these "crypto enthusiasts" who, in 2026, have a "stated goal" of "some alternative 'currency'"?

Look at the schedule of any crypto conference - ethereum events in particular, but others as well - and you will find that your critique has already been widely adopted. The discussion is around replacing power structures and sources of injustice, not merely 'currency'.

I was reluctant to get involved in blockchain tech because I don't care for currency and don't view it as a likely organizing principle for humans for the next thousand years. That was in like 2016.

Today, nearly every blockchain project attempts to overcome challenges other than currency.

Why would anyone trust CZ with their digital crime tokens?

multisig escrow + privacy will bring this new power structure