Tech Industry Leaders Call for AI Labs to Pause Development for Safety, Coinbase CEO Disagrees

March 31, 2023 Bitcoin.com

Bitcoin Hashrate Reaches 400 Exahash per Second, Researcher Says Network Could Reach Zettahash Era by 2025

March 27, 2023 Bitcoin.com

Women in Web3 discuss challenges within the industry

March 8, 2023 Coin Telegraph

Coin Telegraph

Challenges women face within the industry include the lack of representation and toxic "bro-culture."

The world of Web3 has opened up new opportunities for individuals to participate in a more open and transparent internet, and to create wealth. However, despite the potential benefits of this emerging technology, women face unique challenges in the Web3 space. From the lack of diversity in the industry to the gender bias in funding, women encounter significant obstacles that make it difficult for them to thrive in the decentralized web.

To better understand these challenges, Cointelegraph interviewed several women in Web3. Devon Martens, Principal Blockchain Engineer at Sweet NFTs, shared her observations that the crypto industry, like many other technology and financial sectors, is male-dominated. Martens noted that this lack of representation can be a barrier to entry for women who may perceive themselves as being outside the norm

Martens shared her observation that she rarely ever sees women in the C-suite when examining new web3 companies and their management. She noted:

It is hard to pursue something as a concept and feels a little more realistic when you see people in those roles already. That is why it is so important to talk about what we can do to cultivate talent across the board, including encouraging women to get into the space.

Similarly, Sandy Carter, the COO and Head of Business Development at Unstoppable Domains, noted that women make up only 12.7% of the Web3 workforce, highlighting the need for greater diversity within the industry. In her experience, Carter has observed a significant gender gap in job applicants, with only 3% of candidates for a recent role at her company being women.

Carter shared;

When I announced I was joining Unstoppable Domains, I included a link to apply for another role at the company; out of over 1,500 applications for that job, only 3% of the total applicants were women, and this stuck with me.

Briana Marbury, CEO of the Interledger Foundation, discussed the issue of gender stereotypes in the crypto industry, noting that it is often perceived as being dominated by men and characterized by a strong "bro culture" that is unwelcoming to anyone who falls outside of the “pale and male” category. Unfortunately, this stereotype can often dissuade women from participating within the space. Marbury added:

“People, women especially, can often self deselect themselves from pursuing potentially lucrative, rewarding and purposeful career pathways in crypto - or technology more broadly - because they believe ‘it’s not for people like them.’ Intentionality is key here. There needs to be a lot of intention in the crypto space in shifting old tropes into new and inclusive narratives.”

According to Daniela Barbosa, Executive Director of Hyperledger Foundation, diversity is crucial for the creation of better and more robust technologies. She stated that "Study after study reveals that diversity in technology creation produces better outcomes and more robust technologies—that diverse communities are simply stronger communities." However, she also acknowledged that exclusionary behaviors can influence community cultures, and this is a challenge in the crypto industry.

Barbosa highlighted that the crypto industry has a big focus on developers and finance/traders, two communities that unfortunately still have underrepresentation by women. "In crypto, I still see a lot of toxic behavior, which involves aggressive language and insinuation towards particular groups or individuals," she shared. This toxic behavior can further discourage women from entering the industry, creating a double whammy challenge when it comes to gender in the blockchain crypto space.

The lack of gender diversity in the industry is a pressing issue that needs to be addressed. As Barbosa pointed out, diversity leads to better outcomes, and the exclusion of any group can hinder progress and innovation. It is essential to create a more inclusive culture that supports and encourages women to pursue careers in the Web3 industry.

Overall, promoting gender diversity and inclusivity in the Web3 space is essential for creating a more vibrant, innovative, and successful industry. By taking intentional steps to address the unique challenges facing women in the industry, the ecosystem can help ensure that Web3 is a space that is welcoming and accessible to all.

Binance Charity to provide over 30K Web3 scholarships in 2023

January 22, 2023 Coin Telegraph

Binance Academy

Among the education centers involved include colleges in Australia, Cyprus and Germany, Nigerian-based tech hub Utiva, Women in Tech, and two Ukrainian organizations.

The philanthropic arm of Binance — Binance Charity — is set to fund 30,65 scholarships to students keen on forging out a career in Web3 in 2023.

The Binance Charity Scholar Program (BCSP) will provide free Web3 education and training courses which will enable tech-savvy students to upskill without having to leap-frog any unnecessary financial barriers, Binance Charity explained, in a January 20 blog post:

“We recognize that digital education and skills development can be out of reach for many, resulting in a blockchain industry that lacks diversity and talent. The Binance Scholar Program changes all that, covering the costs of tuition and course fees at some of the world’s leading universities, colleges and vocational training providers.”

The blog stated that over 82,000 applicants were interested in becoming a part of the next BCSP cohort, which equates to an acceptance rate of about 37%.

Amongst the education partners getting involved include University of Western Australia, University of Nicosia in Cyprus, Frankfurt School of Finance & Management in Germany, and Nigerian-based technology hub Utiva.

French-based tuition-free training center Simplon, Women In Tech, Kyiv IT Cluster, and Ukraine’s Ministry of Digital Transformation will also host some of BCSP’s events.

Binance Charity said they partnered with the Ukraine-based departments to help re-train Ukrainians who may have lost their jobs due to the war with Russia.

The partnership with Women In Tech will endeavor to train about 3,000 women in rural South Africa and Brazil to support future female entrepreneurs.

Binance Charity will also receive partnership support from Binance Academy — the company’s non-profit blockchain education portal.

In 2022 alone, Binance Charity hraised more than $3.5 million — most coming in the form of Binance USD (BUSD) — which helped fund over 290,000 hours of Web3 education and training courses.

Our @BinanceBCF team has travelled across the globe this year, offering help and education to those in need.

As we roll into the new year, let's look back on everything #Binance Charity has achieved in 2022. pic.twitter.com/mBSpD0jpaF
— Binance (@binance) December 30, 2022

Head of Binance Charity Helen Hai said interest in the program continues to grow in spades:

“The response to our Web3 education projects has been unprecedented, showing the keen appetite of so many people to learn about blockchain, De-Fi, NFTs, coding and much more.”

“We’re seeing interest from a diverse range of people, including a great ratio of women [...] With so many more education initiatives with amazing partners in the pipeline, we’ve never been more excited to build a more inclusive Web3 world,” she added.

Binance Charity did not confirm when the 30,000+ positions would be filled and when each of the scholar programs would start.

Crypto Stories: How an entrepreneur raised $10M for her startup during a bear market

October 11, 2022 Coin Telegraph

Crypto Stories: How an entrepreneur raised M for her startup during a bear market

Coin Telegraph

Josipa Majic explains what she and her partners did to build a crypto company at a time when investors were fleeing the space.

In the midst of the 2018 crypto price slump, a young entrepreneur invested all her funds and personal money into a prototype that combined fintech and crypto services to offer virtual debit cards and crypto payment services for subscriptions. But because it was a bear market, no one wanted to invest the capital to put the solution on the market.

In the latest episode of Cointelegraph’s “Crypto Stories” series, Josipa Majic explains how she and her partners built a crypto company during a bear market at a time when investors were fleeing the crypto space.

“Everyone said no the moment they heard about our crypto roadmap. They said, our LPs [limited partners] — so, their investors — do not understand crypto. [...] It was a really discouraging moment because it just felt like everything was against us. And at that point, May of 2021 approached, and we had little to no cash.”

The company, Revuto, eventually raised $10 million and had 3 million customers on its waiting list before launch.

“Working on a crypto startup is so much more faster, exciting and also stressful than working on a normal startup. It’s literally an order of magnitude in terms of the change.”

Binance Pay partnership allows UAE entrepreneurs to repay loans using crypto

August 30, 2022 Coin Telegraph

Binance

Virtuzone joins the list of mainstream businesses in the UAE, such as JA Resorts and Hotels and Majid Al Futtaim, to officially accept cryptocurrencies following the integration of Binance Pay.

Binance marked its presence among the Middle East investors by running various licensed operations in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and other regions. Targeting efforts in United Arab Emirate's (UAE) mainstream corporate sector, Binance partnered with business lender Virtuzone, allowing new entrepreneurs to repay loans using cryptocurrencies.

Virtuzone joins the list of mainstream businesses in the UAE, such as JA Resorts and Hotels and Majid Al Futtaim, to officially accept cryptocurrencies after integrating Binance Pay into its payment gateway. In addition, by providing businesses the option to repay seed and other forms of funding through cryptocurrencies, the company intends to reduce barriers to entrepreneurship and support the startup communities.

As UAE’s no. 1 company formation specialist, #Virtuzone takes the lead by becoming the first corporate services provider in the country to form a strategic partnership with @binance & accept #crypto payments via #Binance Payhttps://t.co/2fZWbh5uQs @nadeemladki @GeorgyGeorge9 pic.twitter.com/uiZxPAaTXp
— #VIRTUZONE (@Virtuzone_UAE) August 29, 2022

With blockchain venture capital funding going down over 43% in July, entrepreneurs are on the lookout for obtaining funds for new crypto ventures amid an ongoing bear market. In addition to serving this need, Virtuzone also revealed plans to expedite Web3 adoption in the Middle East. On this note, speaking to Cointelegraph, Richard Teng, head of Binance Middle East and North Africa (MENA), stated:

“The market that is developing in the UAE around the Web3 industry, thanks to a number of government initiatives, is one that will become a global hub for investors in digital assets.”

Binance also expects the MENA region to enjoy strong demographic growth in the next three decades. However, Teng believed that entering the untapped market requires the introduction of a regulatory framework for crypto and digital assets.

Binance CEO Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao’s intent to work with the regulators has been established as a well-known fact. In doing so, the exchange restricted the account of Tezos staking rewards auditor Baking Bad “as the result of a law enforcement request.”

“Binance is required to cooperate with such requests, the same as any other exchange. There is a process to contest the seizure with the agency should you wish to pursue that path. But that is done through the agency, Binance has zero control over that process,” explained the exchange while sufficing the move.

Wealth report: As old money procrastinates, young money goes crypto

April 12, 2022 Coin Telegraph

Coin Telegraph

The development of the cryptocurrency industry could not go unnoticed by the global rich. Where do the ultra-wealthy stand on crypto?

The rich get richer. According to the Wealth-X consulting company, in 2020, the number of ultra-high-net-worth individuals worth $5 million–$30 million in the world increased by 1.7% to 295,450 people; the combined net worth of this group increased by 2% to $35.5 trillion.

Observing the investment preferences of rich individuals and institutional investors is instructive. They have access to exclusive information and analytics to inform their investment decisions, and their investments are often supported by an army of advisers, employees of family offices and wealth managers.

Due to the instability in world politics and high inflation in many parts of the globe, 2021 marked a trend for the wealthy to search for new investment growth points. Traditional assets, on which the fortunes of the establishment are usually based — real estate, securities, deposits — are currently under great pressure. According to economist Ziad Abdelnour, 70% of wealthy families in the United States lose their wealth in the second generation, and 90% lose capital in the third generation.

In order to save their clients’ money and their own business, global investment managers have been rebalancing investment portfolios throughout 2021 in an attempt to minimize the consequences of the COVID-19 epidemic and geopolitical shocks.

In 2022, the world faces larger-scale problems related to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine in Europe and tensions in the Middle East. Inflation, rising prices for gold, wheat, oil, palladium and other commodities, and general economic instability in many countries are forcing rich people to consider investing in cryptocurrencies.

Diverging views

Representatives of “old money” and “new money” tend to have different views on crypto assets. For example, Elon Musk said that apart from the stock in his own companies, Tesla and SpaceX, cryptocurrency is his only major personal investment. Many Millennial millionaires’ main assets are digital.

However, most millionaires of older generations continue to treat cryptocurrencies cautiously or even openly negatively. American billionaire investor and vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway Charlie Munger said that Bitcoin is “disgusting and contrary to the interests of civilization.” Lloyd Blankfein, former senior chairman at Goldman Sachs, said that Bitcoin was not useful as a means of saving capital due to its volatility.

Nevertheless, many American asset managers have caved in to the pressure of the crypto industry. JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs and other large investment companies are already doing extensive research on crypto — mainly Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) — and even predict changes in the value of cryptocurrencies.

Crypto enthusiasts with big money

The philosophy of decentralization that lies at the core of the cryptocurrency movement is consonant with many Millennial entrepreneurs’ worldviews. According to Wealth-X, in contrast to popular conceptions of wealth, most ultra-rich individuals across the globe (84%) are self-made, meaning that they have attained their success through education and hard work. Almost 90% of those with a general interest in crypto have created all their own wealth, with just 0.5% relying solely on inheritance.

Self-made wealthy individuals accustomed to taking risks are more open to the volatile nature of cryptocurrencies than most second- or third-generation wealthy “aristocrats.” The average age of the global wealthy population is just over 60, and the average age of wealthy individuals with a general interest in crypto is 53.7.

Speaking to Cointelegraph, Tim Frost, founder and CEO of digital wealth platform Yield App, said that, according to the company’s regular surveys of its client base, “The largest majority of users sit within the 25–45 age bracket, but Yield App has thousands of users aged 50 and above all over the world.”

A pronounced feature of crypto-focused millionaires is, according to Wealth-, their interest in technology and philanthropy.

It is the founders and executives of the technology sector, such as Musk and Tim Cook, who are global entrepreneurs of cryptocurrencies. They draw the attention of thousands of people around the world to this sector, thereby making it more liquid and attractive to investors, including the ultra-wealthy.

Futile denial

The resistance of representatives of old money and old methods of money management to crypto is gradually weakening. The crypto industry is dealing more and more blows to the once-thriving financial machine founded on stocks, bonds and real estate. Today, the futility of ignoring cryptocurrencies is becoming more and more obvious. The statements of Munger and Blankfein, even among like-minded peers, are becoming increasingly perceived as mere grumbling.

Swiss banks have an excellent reputation for being safe and anonymous. For centuries, the richest representatives of the global establishment used to choose the Swiss banking system as a place to store and manage their capital. The reliability of Swiss banks is often compared to the reliability of Swiss watches.

Carole Morgenthaler, a representative of Swiss private bank Lombard Odier, commented that the bank’s investment convictions are based on long-term growth and stability to ensure that the clients’ assets can grow and be passed down to future generations. She added, “Investing in cryptocurrencies does not currently have the required quality and guarantees.”

Despite such a cautious view of crypto assets, the bank is engaged with tech companies in the field of blockchain, specifically Taurus and Wecan Comply, and is “closely looking at the technology.”

The conservative world of Swiss banking might not be in a rush to embrace cryptocurrencies, but it is certainly watching the industry and striving to understand it.

Cryptocurrencies are not a magic investment pill suitable for all categories of investors. Yet in the near future, it will be possible to observe a certain convergence in the positions of crypto enthusiasts and crypto skeptics.

It will take quite a long time for the crypto asset market to become sufficiently “institutional” so that the most conservative investors, who traditionally prefer gold and real estate, start paying real attention to it. The market will have to become less speculative and volatile, getting rid of the main charges brought against it by investment ultraconservatives.

Building businesses in the ‘spirit of Bitcoin’: The Bitcoin Hostel

April 6, 2022 Coin Telegraph

Bitcoin Community

A Bitcoin hostel under construction in Portugal reflects a growing trend of business built with more than just a digital currency in mind.

A Bitcoin (BTC) hostel is coming to Portugal’s shores. As it’s Europe’s first Bitcoin-only hostel, Cointelegraph spoke with the founders to find out how Bitcoin shapes the business model, from planning to architecture to the community.

The Bitcoin Hostel is a homestay and hangout where Bitcoin (Lighting or on-chain) is the only acceptable payment method — a space where “the spirit of Bitcoin” shapes the decision-making process.

The hostel was founded by Berliners Albert Wolframm and his girlfriend, Valeria Pandimiglio. “She’s the business part, and I’m the architecture part, but I’m also more into Bitcoin,” he jokes. The Bitcoin Hostel combines Wolframm’s skills and hobbies: “traveling, Bitcoin and architecture.”

The Bitcoin Hostel shares developments with the Bitcoin community at every stage, taking into account Bitcoiners’ requests and advice in an “open-source style” of governance.

For example, when it comes to raising money, the hostel followed Tiago Vasconcelos’ advice to use Tallycoin. Vasconcelos is the Portuguese Bitcoiner behind the artificial intelligence trading bot that told readers to hodl, and a co-founder of Portugal’s A Seita Bitcoin, which is a Portuguese pun translating to “the Bitcoin Cult,” accepted.

What is the best way to accept #Bitcoin donations?
— Bitcoin Hostel⚡️ (@bitcoin_hostel) April 4, 2022

Vasconcelos told Cointelegraph that running a business through Bitcoin principles is “really disruptive.” He explained that businesses such as Bitcoin Hostel show:

“The true Bitcoin spirit, decentralized, community-driven, open-source! I think it’s the start of a new way of doing business that will start to catch on in the future!”

Indeed, the Bitcoin approach to building a business is gaining traction, from Jack Dorsey’s ₿Trust, which takes zero direction from its overseers to Bitcoin podcaster Peter McCormack’s football club, which he intends to run on a Bitcoin standard.

For examples of the Bitcoin spirit guiding entrepreneurial but grassroots endeavors, Paco De La India is traveling the globe with only a Bitcoin seed phrase in his pocket, while “Nourou” in West Africa strives to put Bitcoin-based decisions at the heart of the Senegalese restoration community.

*The Bitcoin Hostel Portugal. Source: Bitcoin Hostel*

The hostel is hosting a competition to choose the design of the hostel while participating in Twitter Spaces and updating Bitcoiners and interested parties in real time. Regarding the design competition, although Wolframm’s professional architecture skills will come in handy, the website jokes that the design “with the most Hash... eh sorry, Design-Power will win!”

In line with Bitcoin philosophy, Wolframm champions autonomy and “giving power back to the people.” Taking inspiration from his master’s degree, in which he learned that people are happier and more prosperous when equipped with greater autonomy and a vision for the future, he muses that Bitcoin is the tool to allow greater freedoms.

To date, the Bitcoin Hostel has received an “amazing response from the Bitcoin community,” as Bitcoiners around the world are keen to lend a hand.

“We got more than 1,000 followers and, like, so many private messages also from people asking if where we are at, what status we have, and if they can support us in any way.”

The Bitcoin Hostel couple has secured a fiat loan — “we don’t want to sell any Bitcoin” — and have begun scouting locations in Portugal to construct the building. Wolframm shared that he has received a tremendous amount of value from Bitcoiners in the space, and the encouragement spurs him on to continue building out the business in a Bitcoin-centric way.

“MTC,” the founder of Sats Ledger — a Bitcoin savings book for kids — told Cointelegraph that he was similarly overwhelmed by the spirited response from the Bitcoin community when he began his Bitcoin side hustle. MTC also told Cointelegraph that the Bitcoin community reaction was “phenomenal,” sharing this advice:

“If people have an itch to contribute something or to do a side project in this space, I would say ‘Throw your heart into it’ because you’re going to get feedback and connections and insights and experiences from it that you just wouldn’t have dreamt of.”