Does competition really lead to prosperity?

Many people equate capitalism with competition, but this is a fundamental misconception. The essence of capitalism is capital accumulation, and intense competition tends to erode profits little by little.

Imagine a perfectly competitive market—all excess profits are consumed by participants' price wars, and in the end, everyone can only earn at cost. In such an environment, no one can accumulate wealth.

Conversely, what are the truly profitable businesses? Those that can maintain a differentiation advantage and avoid homogeneous competition. Monopolies may sound negative, but from an economic perspective, they mean you can continuously earn excess profits and truly realize capital appreciation.

Here is a critical distinction that is often overlooked: competition and monopoly are not value judgments against each other, but fundamental differences in business returns. The former consumes profits, while the latter enables wealth accumulation. The same logic applies in the crypto market and DeFi sector—real opportunities are never found in red ocean competition, but where you can create unique value.