As anyone who has dealt with decentralized apps or cryptocurrency knows, joining the blockchain space can be overwhelming. Crypto wallets, tokens, cryptocurrency, blockchain networks, gas, addresses, protocols, and exchanges, are only some of the terms a beginner will find. There is no going around it and denying it, blockchain is not the most user-friendly technology out there.

If understanding these terms and navigating them is hard as a user, understanding how they work on the backend and the complex infrastructure that supports it can be even harder. In fact, ease of development is considered by many as one of the biggest issues preventing corporations from actively using blockchain. Not only are blockchain developers in limited supply but the work required to transform existing infrastructure into its decentralized version can also result in high costs.

With blockchain still being a young technology, there are also many uncertainties that need to be dealt with. For example, the blockchain trilemma is pretty much still a thing, the bad implementation of blockchain can result in millionaire hacks, and regulatory uncertainty means more risks. While new and crowd-funded projects can afford to risk building on the blockchain, big corporations do not.

It is not surprising that many projects were born over the past few years with the aim to ease these concerns. Some projects promise to bring the best of the centralized and decentralized world to deal with the trilemma, while others claim to be invulnerable or highly resistant to attacks. However, few projects seem to be focusing on the topic of easing concerns around regulation.

While President Biden’s executive order on crypto was received as good news by the crypto community, it is uncertain what the results will be. In the past, the Securities and Exchange Commission has taken hostile actions against crypto companies like Coinschedule, Ripple, WisdomTree, and LBRY.  These actions have relied primarily on the claims that some cryptocurrencies and NFTs should be considered a security and as such, are under their jurisdiction.

To deal with this issue, Pocketful of Quarters came up with a unique “‘no Action’ ERC-20 Token” which can be used by projects in the gaming industry while remaining compliant with SEC regulations. This is possible due to the company being the only one to get a no-action letter from the SEC, granting its token “consumer product” status. While unique in its kind so far, the company’s approach has proven to be not only innovative but impactful in the space.

Pocketful of Quarters’ COO Tim Tello joined  CryptoOracle’s Co-Founder Lou Kerner in a fireside chat during Grit Daily House. The chat, which took place during Consensus 2022, provided attendees with unique insights on how this unique token could not only change the gaming industry but also the blockchain space.

If you missed the chance to attend Grit Daily House in person and to hear what Joseph had to say, worry not. You will be able to watch the fireside chat in the video below and find our other panels on Grit Daily’s official YouTube Channel.

The post Struggling to Adopt Blockchain? Meet the Token That Could Change That! appeared first on Grit Daily News.

According to the Blockchain Game Alliance and DappRadar’s Q1 of 2022 report, $2.5 billion were raised by blockchain games during the first quarter. If this trend was to continue, investments would increase by 150% when compared to last year, with activity having grown already by 2,000%.

This growth is not fortuitous but the result of technologies like NFTs, Web3, and the metaverse gaining relevance in the blockchain and mainstream tech spaces. In fact, blockchain gaming’s impact on the blockchain space has been so strong that its activity accounts for 52% of all blockchain activity.

Games like Axie Infinity, Splinterlands, Alien Worlds, Crazy Defense Heroes, Sky Mavis, and The Sandbox are some of the games leading to the rise of blockchain gaming. Not only have these games allowed players all around the world to generate economic gains but they have also introduced innovative mechanics and partnerships.  An example of this is The Sandbox’s recent partnership with Time Magazine to develop “Time Square”, a metaverse version of NYC’s iconic intersection.

“The Sandbox is often viewed as a ‘virtual Manhattan’, a vibrant space alive with culture, entertainment, and brands, where anyone can discover, learn, work, meet new people, play, dance, and find amazing new opportunities,” said The Sandbox’s Co-Founder and COO Sebastien Borget in the announcement. “By partnering with TIME, we’re adding TIMEPieces as the beating heart and soul of this virtual Manhattan, where a design call for virtual architects will be held in TIME Square, a place in our creative metaverse for brands and creators.”

But what is the reason behind gamers’ captivation with blockchain gaming? The reason is simple: The play-to-earn model. Historically, gamers have been unable to profit from playing their favorite games as most developers don’t allow real money transactions. While the reasons for this decision vary, they are often related to an attempt to prevent botting, account hacking/sharing, and legal issues.

The result is that most players don’t truly own their in-game assets as they can’t sell them nor take them out of the game ecosystem. Blockchain changed this by introducing NFTs and crypto, facilitating the creation of open marketplaces for gamers to trade their assets. This, in addition to being able to move assets out of the game ecosystem, result in true ownership.

As part of Grit Daily House during Consensus 2022, attendees had the opportunity to hear directly from one of the pioneers shaping the future of blockchain gaming. PixelSmarter’s Founder & DashLeague Creator Joseph Lazukin sat with Entrepreneur Magazine’s Jeff Hunter to talk about the opportunities and challenges in the blockchain gaming industry.

If you missed the chance to attend Grit Daily House in person and to hear what Joseph had to say, worry not. You will be able to watch the fireside chat in the video below and find our other panels on Grit Daily’s official YouTube Channel.

The post The Future of Web3 Gaming and How It Is Driving Blockchain Activity appeared first on Grit Daily News.

Less than one month ago, Austin hosted for the first time what has been one of the most important conferences in the crypto space since 2015: Consensus 2022. The city is also known for hosting South by Southwest “SXSW”, the Enterprise Digital Asset Summit, DCentral, ETH Austin, BitBlockBoom,  and many more. In addition to this, Austin is also home to companies like Gemini, Core Scientific, Talos Digital, and Scala.

When keeping in mind these events and companies, it is easy to understand the reasons behind Musk’s prediction. Austin is a vibrant city in which disruptive tech is not only welcome but has been encouraged over the past years. Back in 2018, Wanchain’s president Dustin Byington was already telling Crunchbase:

“Austin is a natural—and currently budding—hub for cryptocurrency. It has a strong tech and startup community, a big Libertarian influence which the crypto ethos is built off of, and the macro trend of companies moving to Texas because of the lack of state income tax—which could really benefit this new industry.”

Well, Austin has only gotten more relevant in the tech industry since these comments and now, it seems to be only a matter of sustaining organic growth. While the bay area still is the biggest tech hub in the US after having captivated top talent for years, this might be changing. The region’s inability to deal with spiking housing/living prices meant that, over time, the influx of workers and companies shifted directions, with remote working being a major factor.

But what are the reasons that make Austin so attractive to the FinTech, Crypto, and blockchain industries? This was one of the topics discussed in the “Meet Austin’s FinTech Scene” panel, which took place during Grit Daily House at Consensus 2022. Axios’ Reporter Asher Price sat with Henry Collective’s Founder & General Partner Tyler Knight and Silverton Partners’ Managing Partner Morgan Flager to talk all about the city’s vibrant FinTech scene.

If you missed the chance to attend Grit Daily House in person and to hear what these experts have to say on the future of Austin as a FinTech hub, worry not. You will be able to watch the panel in the video below and find our other panels on Grit Daily’s official YouTube Channel.

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Concerns around the ethical implications of blockchain technology have been around since its early days. However, as the technology gained relevance, it would eventually become one of the major sources of both positive and negative criticism. Probably the biggest criticism that blockchain technology has had to face was when the New York Times published a piece on Bitcoin’s environmental impact.

The piece, titled “In Coinbase’s Rise, a Reminder: Cryptocurrencies Use Lots of Energy”, brought further attention to existing concerns on Proof-of-work’s energy consumption. Many articles and columns would show up over the next few days, with companies like Square and Citi weighing in. While the topic of Bitcoin’s use case is certainly not in the spotlight nowadays, it remains relevant.

More recently, Non-Fungible Tokens have also risen to prominence as celebrities and brands around the world started using and advocating them. During the NFT craze, thousands of people joined the discussion on how ethical NFTs really were. While supporters defended their potential use cases and their role in democratizing art, detractors pointed at the financial implications of speculation around them and their hypocrisy.

Debate on the ethics of new technologies is nothing new. The International Journal of Ethics published by The University of Chicago Press was already publishing about the topic back in 1923. In an article titled “Some Ethical Consequences of the Industrial Revolution”, Austin Freeman referred to the industrial revolution by saying:

“This ethical atrophy represents the subsidence to a lower level of essential civilization. For civilization, as we have agreed, is based upon the recognition by man of his duty towards his neighbour; of which none can be more obvious than that of honesty and fair dealing.”

Today, most of us don’t think of the technical revolution as a negative but quite the opposite. Just like that, most criticism toward NFT, blockchain, and crypto, is more about their current status… Not about the technology itself. When it comes to investing in a socially responsible manner, it is not about investing in crypto or not, but the how.

The “The Math of Socially Responsible Investing in Blockchain & the Metaverse” panel saw experts discuss this topic as part of Grit Daily House during Consensus 2022. Leah Callon-Butler, Director at Emfarsis; Evin Cheikosman, Policy Analyst at World Economic Forum; and Nisa Amoils, Managing Partner at A100x Ventures, took to the stage to share their insights, opinions, and experience with the attendees.

Moderated by Linqto’s Chief Strategy Officer Karim Nurani, panelists discussed topics such as environmental concerns around blockchain, the regulation of fintech, and the role of women in developing countries. If you want to know what these experts have to say, you can watch the entire panel in the video below. You can also find our other panels on Grit Daily’s official YouTube Channel!

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With investors currently looking for the best way to deal with the inconsistencies of the current economic landscape, caution seems to be the law of the land across markets. As such, investors are choosing to focus on projects generating actual value instead of their potential, status, or connections. This means that at this time, a startup with a positive balance sheet has a unique opportunity to beat unicorns when it comes to raising pre-IPO funding.

Surprisingly, Venture Capitalists in the crypto ecosystem seem to have remained more cool-headed than their stock counterparts. It is well known by now that Andreessen Horowitz raised a $4.5 billion crypto fund. However, other Crypto investors have also achieved the same, with Sequoia raising $500 million back in May and Binance lab doing the same in early June.

What all of these funds have in common is their heavy focus on Web3 projects, a continuation of a trend that has been going on for several months. The popularity of Web3 in the tech world has been so overwhelming that tech giants like Google, Facebook, and Amazon have been unable to deal with it. Despite having been the mecca for tech employees for more than a decade, these companies have seen an exodus of top talent looking to work in Web3.

While Web3 is only one of the niches driving the pre-IPO deal flow in the blockchain space, its relevance is of special significance. This is especially true due to the criticism Web3 has received from figures like Jack Dorsey, Aaron Levie, Stephen Diehl, and Molly White. Despite this criticism, investors like Marc Andreessen are extremely bullish on Web 3, going as far as saying:

“The easiest way to think about it is: When you get something like this, this sort of collective effect that has a movement behind it and is attracting many of the world’s smartest people to work on it… basically the criticisms end up playing out differently than the critics think. These critics make a long list of all the problems but these genius engineers and entrepreneurs look at that list of problems as a list of opportunities.”

The question “Where Is the Pre-IPO Deal Flow?” was the main topic of one of the panels at Grit Daily House earlier this month. Karim Nurani, Chief Strategy Officer at Linqto; Evan Greenberg Co-Founder of Blockchain Beach; and Marc Weill, Senior Advisor at Two Sigma Ventures, sat to share the unique environment that has emerged with the latest market winter.

If you missed the chance to attend Grit Daily House in person and to hear what these panelists have to say about this topic, worry not. You will be able to watch the panel in the video below and find our other panels on Grit Daily’s official YouTube Channel.

The post Crypto Startup Funding Is Still Going Strong, but Where Is the Pre-IPO Deal Flow? appeared first on Grit Daily News.

Web3 is a loosely defined term that most tech, gaming, and crypto enthusiasts might have heard of or be familiar with. At its core, Web3 is the idea of a new web that doesn’t rely on centralized architecture to fulfill its purpose. By achieving this, users would have full control over their data, censorship would be impossible, single points of failure would be removed, and information would be more accessible.

Over the past decade, the internet has become increasingly centralized as companies like Meta, Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and YouTube. The power these companies have over specific industries and parts of the internet is difficult to measure. Not only do they have full control over platforms used by millions, which is not necessarily a problem, but their services are also so ingrained into the web that they are essential.

By shifting to Web3, advocates hope that a new internet can be built around the principle the web was based on: A network available to everyone. While Web3 is still pretty undeveloped and in the early stages, blockchain technology is the most probable technology when it comes to being the backbone. As such, components like NFT, Cryptocurrencies, nodes, and decentralized governance are also playing an important role at the time.

The relevance of blockchain in Web3 means that users will require a crypto wallet to surf it in an effective manner. This is also the case due to the role that self-sovereign identity will play in this new web. The use of a crypto wallet as a means of proving identity offers huge benefits over traditional methods like usernames, not only in terms of security but also versatility.

If you have been part of the crypto, NFT, or blockchain community for some time, you probably have already interacted with a few wallets. Choosing between wallets has become an increasingly difficult task, with each of them offering different features and standards. So, what conditions should a wallet fulfill in order to become a viable passport to the Web3 ecosystem?

Few people know more about crypto wallets and their role on Web3 than Zengo’s VP of Business and Strategy Ido Sofer. Ido joined Blockchain Analyst & Cointelegraph reporter Rachel Wolfson during Grit Daily House to discuss the role of crypto wallets on Web3. 

If you missed the chance to attend Grit Daily House in person and want to hear what Ido has to say about this topic, worry not. You will be able to watch the panel in the video below and find our other panels on Grit Daily’s official YouTube Channel.

The post Web3 Promises a New World: Crypto Wallets Will Be the Passport appeared first on Grit Daily News.

While the topic of crypto regulation has been constantly present over the past years, it is pressed even further every time investors face a bear market. More often than not, coverage of the topic will talk about the necessity for clearer regulation to prevent crashes and collapses like the one Terra experienced. The fact that a clear regulatory framework is needed for crypto to become safer and reach adoption, is undeniable. However… Who should design is not as clear.

Back in March, the Cryptocurrency ecosystem rejoiced when news came about President Biden signing an executive order that would see federal agencies cooperate to regulate cryptocurrency. The order, according to the administration, was designed to “lead and shape financial innovation to promote prosperity, prevent abuse, and advance democratic values”.

Unfortunately, the order itself is reflective of a major issue that has plagued the cryptocurrency space since 2008 by limiting crypto to the role of a financial tool. Blockchain technology, which is the backbone of crypto and other technologies like NFTs and Web3, is only referred to 4 times in the almost 5600 words long order. The only time the term was used in regards to regulation was to request the addressing of blockchain’s environmental impact.

The attempt to regulate cryptocurrencies without considering the larger role they play as part of complex digital ecosystems shouldn’t be surprising. Governments around the world have proven themselves to be unable to understand the technology and keep up with it. Examples of this include Senator Ted Stevens’s infamous “series of tubes” metaphor when referring to the Internet or questions asked by lawmakers during Mark Zuckerberg and Sundar Pichai’s Senate hearings.

With cryptocurrency being an essential part of blockchain technology, understanding the implications of regulations beyond the financial realm is essential. This is not only in the tech industry and consumers’ best interests but also in the government’s. As efforts to launch a CBDC and rein in big tech gain momentum, the government could find an important ally in blockchain with the development of Web3 and other decentralized technologies. 

Nasdaq’s Global Markets Reporter Jill Malandrino and CFTC’s former Chairman J. Christopher Giancarlo sat with Linqto’s Chief Strategy Officer Karim Nurani to talk about “Government and Its Relationship to Crypto”. The panel, which took place during Grit Daily House at Consensus 2022, covered topics ranging from how crypto falls under a category of its own to the role a CBDC would play on the national economy.

If you missed the chance to attend Grit Daily House in person and want to hear what these panelists have to say about this topic, worry not. You will be able to watch the panel in the video below and find our other panels on Grit Daily’s official YouTube Channel.

The post Catch Me if You Can: Government and Its Relationship to Crypto. appeared first on Grit Daily News.

Not only is the crypto market far from the only market currently crashing but the space has also survived similar crashes in the past. Back in 2018, many believed that crypto was done as a result of the ICO boom, worries about a regulatory crackdown, exchange hacks, and many other events. However, despite such predictions, cryptocurrency perdured and grew even stronger as more stable and efficient safeguards were put in place.

It is not a surprise that most experts agree that while the current crypto crash is certainly alarming from a financial perspective, it is temporary. Just like stocks, real estate, and gold have crashes and corrections just to recover from them eventually, crypto is also cyclical. Vitalik Buterin shared his opinion about the current state of the market in a recent interview with Fortune:

“Crypto has had ups before, and it has had downs before, and it will have ups and downs again. The down periods are certainly challenging, though they are also often the periods where the most meaningful projects get nurtured and built.”

The outgoing bear market represents an opportunity for crypto projects to gain notoriety based on their technological relevance and innovation. Blockchain networks like Ethereum, Cardano, and Polkadot have already benefited from the lessons taught by recent developments. Charles Hoskinson, Cardano’s founder, offered an update on the impact of Terra’s crash on Cardano’s upcoming Vasil hard fork:

“After the collapse of LUNA, we decided to add an additional test harness to what we’re doing and think really carefully about some things. It’s taking a bit more time but we figured that the abundance of caution is well rewarded these days. We’ll just keep building.”

From an investment perspective, the bubble burst is also more multifaceted than most media and people would make investors think. Bubbles have the potential to drive investment to areas that favor innovation, allowing projects in them to get off the ground. In a similar manner, projects that rely on speculation instead of strong foundations are weeded out more often than not. 

Once you understand the potential positive ramifications of a bubble, it is easy to see why investments opt to get altcoins. The potential profit that can be gained from investing in the right altcoin during a bear market is more than enough to allure investors of all levels. However, this doesn’t mean that investing in any altcoin is the way to go as, in fact, choosing the right altcoin is in fact even more challenging than during a bull run.

Back on June 8th, Grit Daily House saw Linqto’s Chief Strategy Officer Karim Nurani, Journey’s Co-Founder & Chief Metaverse Officer Cathy Hackl, and Contrarian Thinking’s Founder Codie Sanchez, sit with CoinDesk TV’s Jenn Sanasie to talk about the crypto market bubble. Titled “Where Is the (Market) Bubble?”, the panel was full of important insights ranging from the Metaverse’s relationship to the bubble, to how investors can navigate the current bear market.

If you missed the chance to attend Grit Daily House in person and to hear what these experts have to say about the Yin and Yang that a bubble can be, worry not. Not only will you be able to watch the panel in the video below but you can also find other panels on Grit Daily’s official YouTube Channel.

The post The Crypto Bubble Is Bad, Right? Well, It’s Complicated appeared first on Grit Daily News.

Back when Satoshi Nakamoto published Bitcoin’s whitepaper in 2008, he described Bitcoin as a “peer-to-peer electronic cash system”. This definition would define the nature of cryptocurrency for years to come, leaving the potential applications of the network supporting it to play a secondary role. 

While many projects tried to give blockchain technology a primary role, it wouldn’t be until 2015 when Ethereum would achieve such a feat. Sure, the network’s cryptocurrency would become an instant hit but Ethereum would show that blockchain was a transformative technology by itself. Ever since, crypto would be just another aspect of a much larger ecosystem that captivated developers and organizations alike.

Crypto’s history is similar to that of the internet itself as both started as a niche technology that would eventually rise to popularity. Once this happened and investors saw their potential, uncontrolled speculation took place with the acquisition of domains and cryptocurrency. As time passed, the inevitable occurred: a bubble formed and eventually burst. 

Despite many experts predicting that the internet would fail as a result of the bubble, the internet persevered and became one of the most defining technologies of the time. Just like the internet, crypto is more than just the speculation that takes time around it, and, hopefully, its applications will be enough to prove detractors wrong.

The success of blockchain and crypto seems to be a given when taking a look at the current trends in the tech world and other industries. Web3, NFTs, decentralized finance, supply chain management, distributed cloud computing, and many more are just gaining ground by the day. No matter how chilly the crypto winter goes, blockchain technology is one of the hottest things.

The relevance of blockchain technology and crypto in different industries was the topic of conversation of one of the panels at Grit Daily House during Consensus 2022. Titled “Chilly This Winter? Cozy Up to these Crypto Plays and the Tech Behind Them”, this panel saw Forbes’ John Ellett sit with some of the experts shaping the industry.

If you want to know what Laguna’s CEO Stefan Rust,  Veritone’s Product Manager Victoria Dickson, and Jsquare’s Co-Founder & CIO James Wo, have to say about the tech behind crypto, this is the panel for you. You can watch this panel below and find our other panels on Grit Daily’s official YouTube Channel.

The post What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Stronger: Why Crypto Isn’t Going Anywhere appeared first on Grit Daily News.

If you believe the previous statements were an exaggeration, you might be surprised to hear that the internet’s inventor agrees with them. Sir Tim Berners-Lee, who invented the world wide web back in 1989 while working for CERN, expressed this belief in a blog post:

“I’ve always believed the web is for everyone. That’s why I and others fight fiercely to protect it. The changes we’ve managed to bring have created a better and more connected world. But for all the good we’ve achieved, the web has evolved into an engine of inequity and division; swayed by powerful forces who use it for their own agendas.”

Berners-Lee is now leading Solid, a Web3 project that is looking to change the internet by making it more modular to offer true data ownership to its users. Just like Berners-Lee with Solid, a host of developers are working on projects that could help Web3 become a reality.

But what is Web3 in the first place? Web3 aims to be the next step in the evolution of the internet, bringing decentralization to a technology that has become highly centralized. What this means is that data silos, censorship, tracking, and monopolies will be a thing of the past.

The Web3 movement has gained ground over the past years, especially with the increasing adoption of blockchain technology and cryptocurrency. The synergy between blockchain and Web3 has become so clear that it is now hard to envision one without the other. This is especially true as cryptocurrencies offer a means for Web3 to take advantage of a decentralized economy.

The cryptocurrencies of blockchain projects related to Web3 have seen an increase in value as a result. Polkadot, Chainlink, FileCoin, and BAT, are examples of such success, creating a new Web3 economy for investors to participate in. Now, with Web3 continuing to make headlines, crypto investors are wondering if they should buy the dip.

Cameron Lee, Laguna’s CMO; Leah Peterson, Business Development Manager at Telos; and Anne Ahola Ward, Co-founder & CEO at CircleClick; joined Entrepreneur Magazine’s Eric Christopher to discuss how to invest in the Web3 economy. The panel took place as part of Grit Daily House’s schedule during Consensus 2022, allowing attendees to learn insights directly from those shaping the future of Web3.

If you missed the chance to attend Grit Daily House in person and to hear what these experts had to say about the future of Web3 and how to invest in it, worry not. Not only will you be able to watch the panel in the video below but you can also find other panels on Grit Daily’s official YouTube Channel.

The post The Internet is Changing: Here is How to Invest in the Web3 Economy appeared first on Grit Daily News.