编者按：近期，比特币的价格出现暴涨，这使得它再一次成为了热点话题。不过，仍然有些人对比特币持怀疑态度，而且他们的怀疑是有理由的。Lily Katz 日前在 Bloomberg 上发表了题为“Five Big Reasons Why People Are Still Skeptical About Bitcoin”的文章，详解了人们对比特币仍持怀疑态度的五大原因。

本文为双语文章，且文后有对重点词汇的解析。以下为正文。

Naysayers point to decline that followed steep climb in 2013.

比特币的否定者认为，比特币价格在2013年疯狂攀升到顶峰，之后迎来下跌。

Dot-com bubble and tulip craze show past market corrections.

比特币类似于互联网公司泡沫和郁金香狂热，而市场终将会纠错。

Bitcoin’s astronomical rally has cryptocurrency bulls feeling vindicated. Not so fast, skeptics say.

比特币价格反弹惊人，仿佛宣告了加密货币春天的来临。不过有人质疑：恐怕牛市的到来还没那么快。

The digital currency’s more than 100 percent surge in the past two months looks eerily familiar, argue the bears, pointing to November 2013, when the price quintupled in short order to top $1,000 for the first time. By Valentine’s Day it was worth around half that, and spent the better part of the next two years languishing below $500.

看跌者表示，在过去两个月里比特币价格蹿高了一倍有余，带给人的是一种诡异的熟悉感——2013年11月，比特币价格一度猛涨五倍至1000美元触顶，而到情人节前后这一数字就已腰斩，随后两年中的大部分时间，比特币价格一直在500美元以下徘徊。

Then it absolutely exploded -- jumping more than $1,400 in two months. At its height last week, one bitcoin could buy about two ounces of gold. Its champions touted the arrival of blockchain into the mainstream, the coin’s underlying technology which they say can lift the poor out of poverty and make transactions more secure, inexpensive and efficient.

这次又是爆炸式的增长——两个月内价格猛涨，超过了1400美元。在上周价格最高的时候，一个单位的比特等价于两盎司的黄金。其支持者吹捧着区块链技术，把它主流化，他们吹嘘道：区块链技术作为比特币的技术基础能帮助人们脱贫致富，直播，让交易更加安全、平价、高效。

But signs of a top have emerged, detractors warn. On May 25, bitcoin surged more than $300 to a record only to turn tail and close little changed. The $600 round trip was the biggest daily swing in its history. It then slumped 8 percent the next day. Bitcoin was down 1.5 percent to $2,255.50 as of 12:35 p.m. in New York. For bears, that kind of volatility shows the asset’s unreliability as a store of value.

但批评的声音也警告说，这一波行情的峰值已经出现。5月25日，比特币价格大涨300美元，创下历史新高后立即回弹，收盘价几乎没有什么变化。大涨大跌600美元创下了比特币历史上最大单日波动。5月26日，比特币价格就下挫了8%，纽约时间下午12点35分，比特币价格下降1.5个百分点到2255.50美元。对看跌者来说，这样的波动性表明，比特币不适合作为一种价值贮藏的手段。

Here are some other reasons why they warn caution is warranted:

他们警告人们谨慎对待比特币很有必要，还有其他几个原因：

Safety Questions 安全问题

This month’s ransomware attacks serve as a reminder that bitcoin is still beloved by hackers and criminals because of its anonymity. The cryptocurrency plunged in 2014 after Tokyo-based Mt. Gox -- then the largest bitcoin exchange -- said it had been breached and then filed for bankruptcy. Its value sank again in August 2016 after hackers stole about $69 million from Hong Kong-based Bitfinex. The exchange has since repaid its customers.

本月爆发的勒索病毒攻击事件警示人们：黑客和罪犯由于其匿名性而对比特币十分偏爱。东京的Mt. Gox是当时最大的比特币交易平台，2014年因违规而申请破产后，加密货币的价格急跌。2016年8月，在香港的Bitfinex被黑客盗窃6900万后，Mt. Gox的价值进一步缩水。该平台已经偿还了其顾客的损失。

Scaling Debate 规模辩论

The bitcoin community has been split for more than a year on how to upgrade its blockchain. The time and fees necessary to verify transactions have climbed to record highs, making it more difficult for businesses to use the currency as a means of payment. While bitcoin executives have said that 2017 might be the year the cryptocurrency really starts to scale, others aren’t so sure.

比特币界就如何升级其区块链而产生分歧已经有1年多了。确保交易所需的时间和金钱已经攀升到了记录最高点，这让比特币作为一种商业上的支付手段十分困难。虽然比特币主管已经表示2017年也许是加密货币真正成气候的一年，不过其他人不置可否。