Bitcoin thus serves a role in wealth maintenance, like gold,
You hope.
for when the markets trainwreck themselves by gambling with fiat inappropriately.
Because bitcoin doesn't fix anything. A replacement for gold isn't what society needs, it needs a replacement for fiat so we can stop worrying about having to run to gold. If bitcoin doesn't get used in commerce (which will require lending), it will never have a
tangible grasp over society like gold, in which case it becomes easily replaceable. Not a good property to have for a value store.