“Simplify the World of Cryptocurrency” On the Record with Nate Whitehill, CryptoSlate

Welcome to ‘On The Record’ with YAP Global, where we speak to the journalists and editors behind the stories that keep you up-to-date on the pulse of the digital asset, fintech, blockchain and cryptocurrency industry.

This week we caught up with Nate Whitehill, Founder, CEO & Editor of CryptoSlate about his background as a tech entrepreneur and where he thinks the industry is headed post 2020. Nate, along with his dedicated team of crypto writers and analysts, never misses a beat in the fast paced world of crypto and blockchain.

Without further adieu, let’s meet the man behind CryptoSlate.

Can you share a bit about your background and how you founded CryptoSlate?

“I’ve been a technology entrepreneur for over a decade. In 2015, I discovered Bitcoin and fell deep into the crypto rabbit hole. In 2017, with my business partner Matthew Blancarte, we started CryptoSlate to simplify the world of cryptocurrency through a clean user experience for news and data.”

Can you give us an overview of CryptoSlate and the vision behind it?
“CryptoSlate is a platform that provides news, data and a directory of people, companies and products. The vision was to add relevant quantitative data to the news articles automatically and develop a platform for tracking cryptocurrencies through dozens of sectors and categories.”

You have experience as an entrepreneur, web developer and programmer — How did these experiences get you to where you are today? What have been some career highlights outside of CryptoSlate?
“I’ve been passionate about building web experiences since I was a child, and started my first business at age 18. Having a design and technical background definitely helped when it came to building CryptoSlate. I’ve always believed that “done is better than perfect” so when we first conceived of CryptoSlate, from idea to launch took about four months. In that time, we built out a news team and cryptocurrency database with over 1000 custom coin profiles. At the time, I visited every coin’s website on CoinMarketCap in my quest to do research and build out the platform.”

How has COVID-19 impacted crypto/blockchain journalism for you?
“Our team was quite distributed prior to COVID-19, so there was no real impact on our business. I think that is one of the benefits of the blockchain space — since it’s so new, most companies and teams are working remote. In addition, it doesn’t have a strong correlation with any traditional industries, so it has largely been unaffected by the economic downturn.”

If you could give one piece of advice to companies and PRs pitching stories to CryptoSlate, what would it be?
“Identifying why a reader would care about a story is the most important element. Ultimately this boils down to how compelling any given story or piece of news is. This can often involve a lot of creativity in terms of exploring interesting narratives, or unique angles to why anyone would want to “learn more” about what is being presented. For example, coin listings on new exchanges are not inherently exciting unless the coin/project itself has an interesting story or is trying to solve a unique problem. Everyone is bombarded with so much information in the world of crypto, so it’s important to figure out how to share the most original, compelling and succinct information with the reader.”

Where do you see the cryptocurrency and blockchain space in 5 years?
“I hope that digital assets are considered a major and respected asset class by traditional investors and that people see blockchain as the evolution of technology meant to exchange value. In the same way the Internet democratized the exchange of information in the 90’s and 00’s, blockchain has the potential to do that for “digital value” in the coming decades.:

What’s a day in the life of CryptoSlate’s editor?
“A CryptoSlate editor will keep his or her finger on the pulse of the crypto news landscape throughout the day and work with our team of writers to suggest, craft and curate unique storylines and thoughtful narratives that haven’t been shared elsewhere. This is, of course, easier said than done.”

Anything else that you’d like to share with us? (Any upcoming ventures, new projects?)
“Earlier this year, we launched CryptoSlate Edge, a members-only premium membership for exclusive CryptoSlate content. At the affordable price of only $8.33 per month, it is one of the best values for access to some of the most interesting stories we cover. In the coming months, we will launch CryptoSlate Pro. This will be an experience geared towards serious retail investors who are looking for additional insights into the crypto markets. Our CryptoSlate Edge subscribers will be the first to learn about this new service and be able to sign up at a discount. You can learn more at CryptoSlate.com/Edge”

Thanks for the chat, Nate!