TEAM TALKS #2: BLOCNATION | Cryptocurrency on a Bracelet

Published in

The Capital

5 min readMay 1, 2018

IN TEAM TALKS I MEET WITH THE TEAMS BEHIND THE PROJECTS — THIS TIME I MET WITH THE TEAM FROM THE UPCOMING DECENTRALIZED ICO BLOCNATION.

In TEAM TALKS #1 I had a good talk with the team from Komodo, which led me to this interview, with the CEO from BlocNation Graeme Perkins.

BlocNation is the first decentralized ICO (dICO) to be launched on the Komodo Platform on the 3rd of May 2018, and have a very interesting and unique business model.

Here is an edited transcript of that interview:

INTRODUCTION:

Graeme Perkins: CEO of BlocNation

Flashy Gordy: Crypto/blockchain market researcher and journalist

WHAT DOES BLOCNATION DO AND WHERE CAN IT BE USED?

BlocNation is a payment solution, that is packed into a BlocNation bracelet, that you simply swipe over a payment machine, and thereby pay for your purchases with cryptocurrency.

It is being used in relation to specific venues, festivals or places, where you can load up your bracelet, and use it as an easy payment solution for the duration of the event.

BlocNation will be added as an extra payment solution through the PouchNation network, that already are well established as payment system providers for festivals and venues in the region.

BlocNation are also making other partnerships though, e.g. with the recent partnership with Vietnam Backpacker Hostels company, that have 11 hostels in Vietnam and accomodate up to 1000 people/night. Vietnam Backpacker Hostels are looking to expand into other countries in the region, and have now begun using BlocNation as a payment solution for their guests.

HOW DOES THE BRACELET WORK?

The bracelet carries a NFC-chip, which registers all your info, and you can thereby simply pay by swiping the bracelet.

BlocNation has partnered with the world leading NFC-chip provider NXP.

NFC (Near Field Communication) is as a much more secure and accurate version of RFID (Radio frequenzy identification device). NFC can fit more information and have more levels of encryption and security, with constantly changing encryption keys.

HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH THE IDEA?

BlocNation is an independent company, but the founders (CEO Graeme Perkins & COO Gino Jacinto) have a background from working with PouchNation, which is one of the biggest deliverers of payment solutions to festivals and venues and southeast Asia.

PouchNation have been operating cashless payments since 2014, in 9 different countries in southeast Asia, with $25M handled in transaction volume through cashless payments solution, and +2M transactions.

Graeme & Gino were actively involved in cryptocurrencies while working at PouchNation, and saw the opportunity of bringing cryptocurrency into the sector of payment solutions for festivals and venues, that they already knew from working at PouchNation.

In January they therefore started evolving the idea, and talking to experts in the field.

Graeme had a meeting with Ben Fairbanks - Komodo Managing Director (aka “Bitcoin Benny”), who he knew through some friends. Ben loved the idea, and had just been hired at Komodo, why he convinced them, to bring their project there. Graeme had already taken a liking to the Komodo Platform, why he was easily convinced.

Since then Komodo helped out with developing the technical details of the project, and providing BlocNation with their own blockchain and token ($BNTN), which they are now introducing to the market through their dICO.

WHAT IS BLOCNATIONS EDGE?

Lower fees and faster processing times than normal payment solutions — creditcards have a clearing period, while the blockchain will be immediate.

The already extensive network from PouchNation which BlocNation directly taps into.

Anyone in southeast asia can use it, even across borders, so you dont have to be dependent on interchanging local currency, and you can avoid the credit card fees.

It is not dependent on internet (which sometimes can be a hassle in the region), but can run completely offline when its used for festivals and venues.

WHERE DO YOU SEE BLOCNATION EVOLVING DOWN THE LINE?

In the recent future we have more partnerships coming, and are working to attract more and more into establishing cashless payment systems, built on our blockchain and with the use of BNTN-tokens.

Down the line it we hope to expand into other sectors, and hope to be able to give the unbanked from the emerging markets access to an easy cashless payment solution, where they dont have to meet any standards (like the credit checks in the banks), but can just sign up and start using it.

This is especially significant, ass less than 5% have a creditcard in the region, and less than the 30% a bank account.

With Blocnation everybody could be able to have a payment solution with no discrimination — this financial inclusion would give everyone equal opportunity and access to finance, because people can just get the app and start using our solutions.

DOES BLOCNATION COMPLY WITH REGULATION?

BlocNation is regulatory compliant in Philippines, and have a New York lawyer connected to the team, that is ensuring that the dICO should also be compliant.

HOW DO PEOPLE PARTICIPATE IN THE DECENTRALIZED ICO?

Tomorrow when the dICO launches you can download the Bloc dICO App from blocnation.io, create an account, send in KMD/BTC/QTUM, and purchase the desired amount.

There will be 4 tiers, and the first one will have a 25% bonus, which lasts until the first 50M $BNTN have been sold.

THANKS TO GRAEME PERKINS FOR TAKING THE TIME, AND SHARING HIS INFO ON THE BLOCNATION PROJECT.

MUCH OBLIGED, FLASHY GORDY

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