Event Recap
NFT space bridges passions for tennis legend Maria Sharapova
Tennis legend Maria Sharapova appeared at the Binance Blockchain Week Paris 2022 to share her interest in nonfungible tokens (NFTs). During an exclusive interview with Cointelegraph, Sharapova mentioned that “she is exposing herself to this new world of crypto and Web3,” noting that the sector will help her better engage with her fans. Sharapova was also one of the strategic investors behind MoonPay’s Series A financing round, yet she mentioned that she aims to bridge her personal experiences to the digital world moving forward. Maria Sharapova (right) with Cointelegraph senior reporter Rachel Wolfson (left) at Binance Blockchain Week Paris 2022. Source: Rachel Wolfson Cointelegraph: What are you doing here today at Binance Blockchain Week Paris? Maria Sharapova: I’m crypto curious and wou...
Crypto Biz: A Futurist take on crypto
You might not know it, but Canada is quietly becoming a major player in the blockchain and crypto scene: Ethereum has strong Canadian roots, Toronto-based 3iQ launched North America’s first physically-settled Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) and the percentage of active crypto holders in the country has increased steadily over the past two years. Against this backdrop, I had the pleasure of attending this year’s Blockchain Futurist Conference in Toronto, where I got to moderate two panels on rebuilding the financial system through Web3 and onboarding the next wave of crypto users. The event served as another reminder that the industry’s brightest minds are still building amazing products despite current market conditions. Not to sound overly cliche, but it’s hard to be b...
Korea Blockchain Week, Aug. 9: Second-day takeaways from the Cointelegraph team
Korea Blockchain Week (KBW) 2022 wrapped up its two-day mainstage events this evening, which again saw a number of influential speakers take to the podium including Janine Yorio of Everyrealm, Yat Siu of Animoca Brands and Sky Mavis’ Jeffrey Zirlin. Held at the Grand Intercontinental Seoul Parnas, the second-day conference saw thousands of attendees engaged across three conference tracks — Stage Seoul, Stage Busan and Stage Jeju. The majority of the discussions on the second day focused on the future of the Metaverse, and the strategies that Web3 companies are taking to grow the industry. Given that the event was based in Korea, many were interested in the many exciting Web3 projects coming out of the Korean blockchain scene. The two-day event turned in a very large attendan...
Positivity blazing through a bear market: Blockchain Economy Istanbul 2022
Held at Hilton Bomonti, a fancy hotel next to a renovated and repurposed beer factory in Istanbul, the fourth iteration of the Blockchain Economy Summit 2022 (BE2022) proved to be a significant step-up compared to its pre-pandemic predecessors. The previous summit, BE2020, was held at the WOW Convention Center two years back. In addition to being situated in a harder-to-reach part of Istanbul, the summit coincided with the COVID-19 outbreak, further impacting the overall attendance. Since the sole purpose of that venue was organizing large-scale events, the crypto community from two years prior was just not big enough to fill the space. As a direct result of the aforementioned factors, the BE2020 felt like a two-day trip to a ghost town. Pre-show pictures: Great music and performances at @...
The UK ‘Bitcoin Adventure’ shows BTC is a family affair
Bitcoin (BTC) is for everyone: toddlers, kids, hard rockers and even racing pigs. At the “Bitcoin Adventure” held in Avon Valley, near Bristol, Bitcoiners and hobbyists shared their knowledge, quips and personal journeys down the Bitcoin rabbit hole despite the predictably wet United Kingdom weather. Better still, Bitcoin’s “toxic maximalism” was MIA. pic.twitter.com/7IOtpYuSDh — The Bitcoin Adventure (@TheBTCAdventure) July 3, 2022 A world-first for a Bitcoin meetup, the “Adventure” took place at a wildlife park. So while some of the U.K.’s household name Bitcoiners headlined the main stage, the 250 attendees who bought tickets, (payment in BTC, naturally) could also play with the park’s furry Bitcoiner mascots: petting goats, cuddling rabbits and specta...
The UK ‘Bitcoin Adventure’ shows BTC is a family affair
Bitcoin (BTC) is for everyone: toddlers, kids, hard rockers and even racing pigs. At the “Bitcoin Adventure” held in Avon Valley, near Bristol, Bitcoiners and hobbyists shared their knowledge, quips and personal journeys down the Bitcoin rabbit hole despite the predictably wet United Kingdom weather. Better still, Bitcoin’s “toxic maximalism” was MIA. pic.twitter.com/7IOtpYuSDh — The Bitcoin Adventure (@TheBTCAdventure) July 3, 2022 A world-first for a Bitcoin meetup, the “Adventure” took place at a wildlife park. So while some of the U.K.’s household name Bitcoiners headlined the main stage, the 250 attendees who bought tickets, (payment in BTC, naturally) could also play with the park’s furry Bitcoiner mascots: petting goats, cuddling rabbits and specta...
‘Regulations are in place to help crypto businesses understand operations,’ says The Bahamas PM Philip Davis
The Bahamas Prime Minister Philip Davis told Cointelegraph that the region has a regulatory regime in place that will enable crypto businesses to operate within its jurisdiction. During an interview at SALT’s Crypto Bahamas conference, Davis shared that The Bahamas recently published a white paper framework that will allow crypto businesses to “grow and prosper,” while letting companies understand the region’s expectations. He added: “The policy also takes into account the balance between concerns people have about cryptocurrency and the risks that come along with it. [The] policy is to protect consumers, [the] integrity of the space and at [the] same time, ensure that we minimize all risks that may be associated with these businesses.” Davis pointed out that crypto innovation is already w...
‘Our democracy will better evolve because of DAOs,’ says Animoca’s Yat Siu
The rise of Web3 has paved the way for new business models that could shape the next phase of the internet. For instance, nonfungible tokens (NFTs) will play a large part in the open metaverse as the underlying assets people interact with. Decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) are also coming to fruition to allow for community governance within virtual environments. The growth of Web3 has essentially allowed NFTs and DAOs to flourish. For example, recent data from DeepDAO — a DAO stats platform — shows that DAOs have experienced 130-times growth over the last year, reaching a market capitalization of $24.8 billion. In December 2021, DeepDAO found that the total assets under management (AUM) for DAO treasuries listed on the platform increased from around $380 million in Januar...
SXSW 2022 showcased immersive NFT experiences, lacking crypto and Bitcoin sessions
South by Southwest — commonly referred to as “South By” or “SXSW” — has returned to Austin, Texas this year to showcase the latest trends in interactive media, music, art, film and technology. While SXSW runs through March 20, 2022, the entertainment and technology festival kicked off its first weekend with a large focus on Web3 and nonfungible tokens (NFTs). NFT activations and panels SXSW’s attendees’ interest in NFTs and the future of the internet was particularly evident at the venue hosted by Blockchain Creative Labs (BCL) — a business and creative unit formed by FOX Entertainment in 2021. On March 11, the first day of SXSW, a line consisting of hundreds of people wrapped around the streets of Fifth and Trinity in downtown Austin as SXSW badge holders anxiously awaited entrance to BCL...
Can DeFi and CeFi coexist? Three takeaways from experts panel
As price action bewilders market makers and traders, experts in the crypto industry reached an agreement on several important points last week. Notably, centralized finance (CeFi) and decentralized finance (DeFi), can coexist, and a “blend” of financial products and services will be available to users in the future. On Jan. 21, Cointelegraph moderated the panel discussion, “Can CeFi and DeFi Coexist?” for the Global Blockchain Business Council. In the video, panelists hash out questions related to adoption, banking the unbanked, and whether innovation means disruption of traditional financial services. [embedded content] Salient points included the need for greater education and transparency in the cryptocurrency space, while financial inclusion could be reached thanks to smooth onbo...
