Can females join the crypto party?
Newsflash: females are interested in crypto too. The conversation surrounding #WomenInCrypto is steadily gaining momentum in the media and quite frankly, it’s timely. Movements such as #MeToo and #Times Up show a growing trend of women collectively and globally coming out of the shadows and stepping into their power.
We are now at a standpoint where women must choose to participate, because the reality is that men still dominate the crypto space. Only 5% to 7% of all cryptocurrency users are currently women. In February 2018 Forbes released the The Richest People In Cryptocurrency.Thus far, all 19 are men. Cryptocurrency wealth is highly concentrated and some surveys show 71% of digital currency is owned by men; one digital wallet company says fewer than 6% of its customers are women.
That said, the tide is slowly turning and over the last six months, the amount of women considering an investment in cryptocurrencies has risen from 6% to 13%. Blockchain has always been about creating more open systems and this spirit can be seen in sites such as cryptomoms.com — a space dedicated to increasing female participation in crypto. The message behind sites like this is clear: the party is inclusive and crypto is open to everyone, everywhere and not just ‘tech bros’, ‘Silicon Valley heads’ or Caucasian men.
Sadly, the gender imbalance is still, however, real and cryptocurrency will never reach its full potential if 50% of the population are not invited to join in.
Perhaps part of the problem is that cryptocurrency has been male dominated from its core. We only have to look back to its roots to see that the earliest adopters primarily included male PC gamers and cyberpunk community members. Part of the solution could therefore be to look forward and focus on empowering the next generations, female and male, to collectively realize its potential.
The teens take on crypto
Digital native by birth, early adopters by mentality — and advocates of equality and defying gender norms — today’s teenagers are arguably the secret ally that can help tip blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies into the mainstream for everyone. That’s a mission that female crypto founder, Melanie Mohr, is fixed on achieving.
This year she appointed a Young Entrepreneurs Advisory Board, comprising of ten Generation Z board members from around the world, to understand their perspectives on cryptocurrencies. Their views fed into the creation of the WOM Token, a currency for rewarding word-of-mouth recommendations, which will be sold through a Dutch auction later this year.
Meet the Young Entrepreneurs Advisory Board
Berlin, the microcosm
Melanie is based in Berlin and the city itself is a more progressive example of what the tech startup and crypto scenes can look like when women also lead the charge. Berlin’s artistic, inclusive and slightly anarchistic spirit have arguably paved the way for a hub of creative minds — and a positive example of not only females in crypto, but females in power.
As a female working on the WOM project and being part of Berlin’s inclusive scene, I have come to recognize my own personal privilege. I certainly feel the positive influence of working in an environment where female leadership shines, and living in a city that actively encourages females to join the party.
Part of Berlin’s success is that communities of women in crypto have emerged, who regularly meet at conferences and meetups and share knowledge. The beauty of the blockchain community is that people aren’t precious when it comes to sharing their learnings — they want the information to spread because they believe in creating a more open and decentralized digital space. Crypto should be an inclusive space globally and unfortunately, until gender is entirely irrelevant to the conversation surrounding crypto, this is still an important discussion.
Thankfully that discussion is becoming increasingly positive. London Block Exchange’s senior business analyst, Agnes de Roeye, recently said:
“There’s still a common misconception that cryptocurrency is a game for men, but we’ve seen hundreds of women sign up for our exchange in the last few months and some of the most inspiring and knowledgeable investors, leading the way in the industry are female.”
There are clearly already women at the crypto party and many more that want in. By finding power in numbers, and with persistent and pervasive media attention on the issue, women are finding the courage to speak up, to speak out and get involved.
