Energy Web Token Now Available on Liquid Exchange: Q&A with EWF CEO Walter Kok

The Energy Web Foundation (EWF) and the EW Chain validators are excited to share that this week the Energy Web Token (EWT) has been listed on global exchange Liquid . Following the launch of the Energy Web Chain that went live in June , this is another important milestone in the advancement of energy blockchain. Why? Because now it is easier than ever for dApp builders and market participants alike to make use of the Energy Web Chain .

We sat down with EWF CEO Walter Kok to learn more about the EWT, Liquid exchange, and what’s next for the Energy Web Chain.

What is Liquid?

Liquid is one of the many exchanges where you can trade crypto. After performing due diligence on a large number of potential exchanges, we (the validators and EWF) ultimately chose the global exchange Liquid. They are an inclusive crypto and fiat currency exchange founded in 2014. In the 12 months ending May 2019, Liquid traded more than USD $50 billion. What has impressed me most so far has been Liquid’s robust known-your-customer (KYC) process. That kind of rigor is important for the integrity of our chain and its purpose in the energy sector.

Why Liquid?

The Energy Web Foundation is a mission-driven organization that operates in a regulated energy market. EWF’s priority is regulatory compliance, including strict KYC and, until U.S. regulatory issues are resolved, restrictions on U.S. persons. Liquid is perhaps not the biggest exchange, but it has an excellent reputation for regulatory compliance. The Energy Web community determined that this factor was more important than potentially greater liquidity on exchanges that see significantly more activity by speculators. We focus on the long-term success of our chain.

Our highest priority is ensuring energy-sector confidence in blockchain technology, and catalyzing the development of decentralized applications running on the Energy Web Chain. Ultimately, the energy sector only derives benefit from blockchain technology if useful dApps are running that meet the needs of the industry-ranging from renewable energy markets to distributed energy resource digitization and integration.

Will you list on other exchanges?

That really depends on our ecosystem. We want our token to be available for anybody that wants to develop applications on our chain. Such a token comes along with operating a public blockchain (although our validators are white-listed energy-sector players via our permissioned proof-of-authority approach to consensus). Our first priority is to make sure we get clearance for the U.S. and there is also great interest in our community for the possibilities of decentralized exchanges and bridges to other chains (Ethereum, Libra, etc.)

What happens next?

The first dApps have already been migrating from Energy Web test networks to the live EW Chain. In tandem, we are spinning up a number of new projects-from proofs of concept and minimal viable products to full commercial applications-in partnership with our Affiliates. For example, just last week we announced a major project in partnership with PTT in Thailand , to build a full commercial dApp for a blockchain-based renewable energy market in Southeast Asia.

But there remains lots of room for blockchain innovation in the energy sector. We encourage other blockchain developers to step into this space and beginning writing smart contracts and developing dApps on our chain that serve the global energy sector and beyond.

Originally published at https://www.energyweb.org on September 17, 2019.