“The best use case for blockchain technology is still within our own financial systems,” Says Michael Nye: Host of the Evolvement Podcast
In the last year, crypto experienced a hard hit in terms of valuations and public perception. Fortunately, it seems that the days of navigating the crypto snowstorm are behind us. According to the CEO of stocks and investment website ADVFN, Clem Chambers states that the “crypto winter is over and Bitcoin could hit $6,000 soon and go on to $10,000” due to the Chinese Yuan depreciating, creating more interest around bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Chambers continues to say that “Money flowing into stablecoins is going to lift bitcoin because fundamentally money flowing into crypto is what sustains and raises prices.” As the tides seem to be changing, we recently attended Crypto Invest Summit 2019, speaking to thought leaders in the space who shared their perspective for the best use cases blockchain can hone in on, to put the crypto winter behind us for good.
Michael Nye, Host of the Evolvement podcast believes that the “best use case for blockchain technology is still within our own financial systems.” He said, “Creating transparency and utilizing this tech to bring p2p digital cash to the world can revolutionize the way our economic system functions.” Nye’s beliefs are a reminder of how our current financial systems need to be re-evaluated to achieve a more democratic and empowered economy. This notion is echoed by blockchain economist Navroop Sahdev’s interview with Forbes saying that “Cryptocurrencies can serve as a stable store of value in a world where the value of fiat money is directly dependent actions of national governments.” This will not only be beneficial to countries with a weak national currency but will provide an opportunity for economic growth in developing countries.
Shifting gears to the gamification of blockchain, Marc Boiron, Partner at FisherBroyles, LLP is confident that, “the use of blockchain in gaming continues to be the best use case when in-game virtual goods are traded on a blockchain or virtual currencies are transacted within the game.” He expands on this topic sharing that, “in-game virtual goods are a natural fit for blockchain because it can prevent fraud, which is common. The user experience does not need to be any different than the current experience and it gives greater value to the goods as they can be traded within the network.”
Upon taking a closer look at the 138 billion dollar gaming industry, Canaan Linder, Founder, and CEO of Stardust writes from a publishers point of view that they “do not receive any benefit from allowing users to buy & sell their items on the secondary market.” Linder continues to write that “secondary markets such as the Steam Community Market, PlayerAuctions, OPSkins and more have been taking 15%+ commissions from gamers buying and selling items for cash. Game publishers get none of this revenue.” Linder shares a valuable use case to why blockchain marketplaces provide lower operating costs, which allows them to operate with a lower profit margin than the traditional secondary marketplaces.
The last unique perspective shared was from Hosts of the podcast Coin Boys. Daniel Gutierrez begins by emphasizing the importance of privacy and data. “Currently other companies are making money off your personal data, more than what you’re aware of, or agreed to. Which is why I think a great and easy place to start is your browser.” Gutierrez continues “As of now, there’s Brave, a browser that uses blockchain technology to allow users to take control of their own data.” I believe we all inherently want a cyber shield around our personal information, but the standard of communication has shifted where we continue to participate in systems that regularly take advantage of our data. This will potentially solve the problem of privacy on the internet that has plagued the network since its genesis.
His Co-Host Andy Steig further highlights a few important issues that blockchain could solve saying, “Social media has two big problems that blockchain can help fix, censorship and monetization.” Steig notes that centralized sites like Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Reddit hold “the key and playing judge, jury, and executioner to content that you post, all while taking a huge percentage of ad revenue for that content.” Decentralized platforms like Steem, DLive, and DTube provide an alternative to posting and facilitating content, where the creator is able to make money directly.
Both agree that in order to overcome said challenges, they must become user-friendly, which is “the key for the growth of a project and adoption of blockchain tech all around. A majority of people have come to the conclusion that blockchain technology is wonderful, but many have zero clue how to use it.” Gutierrez and Steig foresee that this can truly be achieved once a company is capable of integrating the technology seamlessly into their systems, thus alleviating the steep learning curve that is currently attached to crypto.
Crypto Invest Summit continues to bring some of the best minds together aiming to push the agenda of mass adoption forward. Although blockchain and crypto are often labeled with controversy and doubt, real use cases will inevitably prevail, providing hope that the crypto winter is over and spring is upon us.
