A special Sunday post to wrap up Bitcoin Women’s Week…
I have thoroughly enjoyed the product of the Digital Currency Council’s week-long focus on women in bitcoin. Mostly because they did more than pay lip service to the need for more active involvement in the industry by women; they actually dedicated their blog and platform to women who wanted to voice their unique perspectives. Cover to cover, the content this produced was excellent.
But it’s a lot to comb through, so I wanted to summarize all of these posts with the must reads up top…
(*Must Read*) Fereshteh Forough (founder of Code to Inspire) wrote about her experience as an Afghan refuge who grew up in Iran, and the power that technology and digital currencies have to empower women in even the most oppressive regions of the world.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/empowering-afghan-women-with-coding-and-bitcoin-education/
(*Must Read*) Primavera De Filippi (a research fellow at Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society) wrote about the potential for blockchain technology and smart contracts to support and facilitate better community governance.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/how-the-blockchain-may-support-and-facilitate-community-governance/
(*Must Read*) Liz Prehn (the firm administrator at tax law firm Moskowitz LLP) wrote about one of my favorite topics, the potential for digital currencies to solve the marijuana dispensary industry’s chronic (pun intended) banking problems.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/legal/virtual-currency-is-it-an-answer-to-dispensary-banking-problems/
(*Must Read*) Margaret Cullum (an attorney at Mills & Williams LLP) wrote about digital currencies’ potential and viability as a tool in money laundering schemes, and what the industry can do to weed out bad actors and stay on the right side of regulators.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/legal/no-more-suitcases-full-of-cash-money-laundering-in-the-age-of-digital-currencies/
(*Must Read*) Elsa Broeker (an attorney at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP*) wrote about California’s virtual currency regulation climate. Ben Lawsky and the Bitlicense get all the press, but the CA bitcoin regulations are arguably more important.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/legal/california-virtual-currency-legislation/
*Great post, but seriously: screw firms with four names. Get creative / less narcissistic.
(*Must Read*) Tanaya Macheel (contributor for CoinDesk) wrote why now is a good time for the Bitcoin news media to “become more challenging, more critical, less promotional, and less like a campaign.”
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/nows-a-good-time-for-the-bitcoin-news-media-to-become-more-challenging-more-critical-less-promotional-less-like-a-campaign/
Elizabeth Ploshay (Bitcoin Foundation board member and NPO outreach for BitPay) wrote about bitcoin’s potential to enfranchise women across the globe in regions where they are restricted from basic financial services and treated as second-class citizens.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/bitcoin-a-social-political-and-economic-game-changer-for-women-globally/
Shannon Steele (a student in the University of Nicosia’s first bitcoin MOOC) wrote about her experience learning about bitcoin and how she thinks about future involvement in the financial services and blockchain industry.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/uncategorized/what-lies-ahead-for-financial-services/
Pamela Morgan (an attorney and board member at the College Cryptocurrency Network) wrote about the potential for bitcoin’s multi-sig technology to increase economic inclusion of women participating in cooperative organizations.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/legal/empowering-women-in-co-ops-finding-financial-freedom-and-control-in-bitcoins-multi-signature-technology/
Hannah Kim (the co-founder of Mexican wallet service Volabit) wrote about bitcoin’s potential to disrupt mobile banking services at the other end of one of the world’s largest remittance corridors (and what her company is doing to make that happen).
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/uncategorized/unleashing-the-power-of-bitcoin-mobile-payments/
Hannah Rosenberg (CEO of Velas Commerce, which offers bitcoin e-commerce solutions to global SMEs) wrote about how bitcoin can eliminate the barriers to global e-commerce and usher in an era of truly global “Innovative E-Commerce”.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/bitcoin-enables-innovative-e-commerce-markets/
Sarah Hody (in-house legal counsel at Coinbase) wrote about her personal journey through law and financial services, and why she transitioned full-time to a role advocating for digital currency.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/legal/opportunity-for-all-in-bitcoin/
Patty Rangel (a producer at METAVERSEproductions) wrote about her experience in the virtual world gaming (i.e. SecondLife & WoW) industry and opportunities that are present thanks to the intersection of the virtual reality and digital currency worlds.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/the-intersection-of-bitcoin-and-virtual-worlds/
Daliah Saper (entrepreneurial attorney who founded her own niche legal practice at the age of 24) writes about the importance of finding your niche and how she became a bitcoin enthusiast.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/legal/building-a-legal-practice-on-the-cutting-edge/
Christine Dahl (an attorney and founder of BitCounsel) wrote about the potential for digital currencies to create communities that reduce human suffering, not just for women, but for their men and children, too.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/legal/creating-a-bitcoin-ecosystem-that-reduces-human-suffering/
Danetha Doe (host of #FutureofMoney and co-president of the “Future of Accounting” community) wrote about how bitcoin is sparking entrepreneurship in Africa, a continent which has already taken the lead in mobile money.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/accounting/digital-currency-sparking-entrepreneurship-in-africa/
Trace Freese (an online strategist and founder of Strong Estate LLC) wrote an entertaining post outlining the practical benefits of bitcoin and reasons why women should be excited about digital currencies.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/finance/heres-the-deal-with-bitcoin-ladies/
Hannah Konitshek (the founder of LawGives where she focused on the intersection of Law, Entrepreneurship and technology) wrote candidly about the abysmal percentage of women in bitcoin leadership positions: just 16 of 267 executives at the 53 companies she reviewed - less than half of the already abysmal tech industry’s average of 14%.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/are-women-participating-in-the-digital-currency-revolution/
Inggrid Yonata (writing for Digital Currency Council and an entrepreneur and journalist) wrote about some of the common misconceptions of bitcoin.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/common-misconceptions-about-bitcoin/
Melissa Donohue (founder of financial literacy firm Financial Nutrition) wrote about how bitcoin immersion could help girls’ improve their financial literacy and spark interest in technology and “STEM” fields.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/girls-financial-literacy-and-bitcoin/
Jinyoung Englund (Director of Communications at the Bitcoin Foundation) wrote about the need to attract more women in bitcoin, and points out that the Foundation itself is majority run by women - even though just one of its seven board members is a woman.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/women-in-bitcoin-empowered-to-do-it-all/
HaeKyung Chung (Chief Marketing Officer at Coinplug, Inc. in Seoul) wrote about the importance of getting women to try new technologies, and why bitcoin might be the best place for young women to start.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/try-new-technologies-starting-with-bitcoin/
Helen Disney (Director of Outreach for the Bitcoin Foundation) wrote about a similar theme as her colleague Jinyoung; what if more women worked in fintech more broadly? But she addresses this question from an English perspective.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/what-if-the-best-female-talent-was-attracted-to-work-in-fintech/
Stephanie Wargo (VP of Marketing at BitPay) wrote about the need to market bitcoin to the rest of the world. In other words, how can we break out from the bitcoin echo chamber and recruit more believers to the bitcoin cause?
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/why-we-need-to-market-bitcoin-to-the-rest-of-the-world/
Amor Sexton (Australia’s first digital currency-focused lawyer) wrote about how bitcoin can help millions of women around the globe in the remittance market in particular, where they send 50% of annual remittances and a greater proportion of their pay.
http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/how-bitcoin-can-help-millions-of-women-around-the-world/
For Entrepreneurs
The MIT E-Lab is a well established (20+ year) program that helps startups by matching them with MIT & Harvard business school students for a semester. The E-Lab is now looking for cryptocurrency related startups at various stages, so apply if you think this could help your efforts. (You don’t need to be local, but a c-level exec has to be in Cambridge frequently.) To apply, or for more info on E-Lab visit http://elab.mit.edu/.
Events
“Bitcoin 2015” - It’s happening this fall. Stay tuned.
Texas Bitcoin Conference - Austin (Mar. 27-29)
The 2015 Texas Bitcoin Conference will highlight how Bitcoin 2.0 and the blockchain will impacttomorrow’s ultra-connected and decentralized world of business and society—“changing the way we do everything.” The event will feature a thought-provoking keynote delivered by celebrated economist, technologist and author George Gilder, who will discuss themes from his upcoming book, Bitcoin & Gold: Information Theory of Money. Other panelists include Steven Stockman, former U.S. Representative for Texas’s ninth congressional district, Sumabala P. Nair, IBM business analytics and strategy architect and a leading member of IBM’s Project ADEPT, as well as sponsors such as Rivetz, Factom, GoCoin, Cryptocurrency Partners, The Dapps Fund, Lighthouse Partners, PeerTracks, Tally Capital, Transform Public Relations, and the Digital Currency Council. Conference registration is $150 for a full pass. Discounts for students are available. Hackathon registration is free.
Inside Bitcoins Conference and Expo - New York (Apr. 27-29) Inside Bitcoins is the largest bitcoin and blockchain technology focused event series worldwide. Join Inside Bitcoins when it returns to New York for the third year. Speakers include Barry Silbert, Marc Hochstein, Brian Kelly, Dan Morehead, Perianne Boring, Gil Luria, and more. Plus, TBI Daily readers get 10% OFF any pass with code TBIDAILY. See you there!
Jobs, Jobs, Jobs
Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed)
-Stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin.
-Open positions: Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, UI/UX Designer, Executive Assistant.
-Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email jobs@bolt.com.
Elliptic, London (VC-backed)
-Full-service bitcoin custodian.
-Open positions: Data Scientists and Front-end developers.
-Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com
Today’s Tid Bits
IBM Looking at Adopting Bitcoin Technology for Major Currencies
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/12/us-bitcoin-ibm-idUSKBN0M82KB20150312
IBM is considering adopting the blockchain to create a digital cash and payment system for major currencies. IBM is hoping to make it easier for people to transfer cash or make payments instantaneously using technology, not a bank or any clearing partner. According to a trusted source, the company has been in informal discussion about a blockchain-tied cash system with a number of central banks, including the Fed. The project is still in it’s infancy.
Bitcoin Coder Garzik Signs Deal to Deploy ‘BitSats’ In Space
http://blogs.wsj.com/moneybeat/2015/03/12/bitbeat-bitcoin-coder-garzik-signs-deal-to-deploy-bitsats-in-space/
Jeff Garzik, a bitcoin core developer, has a plan to put mini satellites into orbit to provide secure, remote backup for Bitcoin’s growing store of data. Dunvegan Space Systems, Garzik’s company, announced yesterday that it has partnered with Deep Space Industries Inc., to build the first 24-unit constellation of “BitSats.” BitSats will keep a complete record of the blockchain ledger, and will serve as a data storage solution and communication services tool. Eventually Garzik wants to sell BitSats to customers, $1m for one BitSat, $19 million for a full 24-unit constellation.
Charlie Shrem is Going to Prison, Reflections from Bitcoins’ First Felon
http://charlieshrem.com/so-im-going-to-prison/
On March 30th, Charlie Shrem will be self surrendering to Lewisburg Federal Prison Camp in Pennsylvania and will serve two years for aiding and abetting the operation of an unlicensed money transmitting business. Shrem has been on house arrest for the past 14 months and has remained fairly active in the bitcoin community. Shrem admits in his post, “I did the crime, and I will do the time.”
Wedbush, TeraExchange Execs Form Wall Street Bitcoin Advocacy Group
http://www.coindesk.com/wedbush-teraexchange-execs-form-wall-street-bitcoin-advocacy-group/
The Wall Street Bitcoin Alliance (WSBA) has launched with the hopes of promoting Bitcoin and blockchain technology adoption in the financial markets. The group is hoping to lobby government agencies and regulators on topics including regulation, innovation and the way digital currencies are taxed. The WSBA is offering full membership to finance firms and associate membership for bitcoin companies.
Intuit Expands Bitcoin Payment Service to Australia
http://www.coindesk.com/intuit-bitcoin-payment-australia/
Intuit, financial management specialist, is expanding its PayByCoin product to Australia. PayByCoin integrates bitcoin into the company’s Intuit Quickbooks service, enabling merchant adoption. The service uses BitPay’s platform API to operate and is a product of Intuit Labs.
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