This interview is the long-form version of a conversation about the promises of cryptocurrencies and blockchain with Perianne Boring, President at Chamber of Digital Commerce. www.digitalchamber.org
Clips from the interview
Everybody benefits
“There’s so much innovation from blockchain, this technology will affect everybody in 10-20 years timeframe.”
The fascination of bitcoin
“I was briefed on a technology called bitcoin that worked outside of any government, this was fascinating. I dedicated my career to this technology. All of my family works in IT, so it’s in my genes.”
Disruption vs. benefits
“I see it as an evolution, not disruption. I’m careful about this term, it can be scary to incumbents. I want them to explore and start investing in this, talking about disruption would turn them off. Better speak about benefits.”
An inclusive technology
“74 percent of the world population and 50 percent of the US population do not have access to basic financial services. This technology will lift a lot of people out of poverty and can help them engage in global commerce.”
Freedom to transact
“Governments have a monopoly on currency, this is unjustified. Our monetary system is a global experiment that is not going to last. Inflation… monetary systems are sick. This will get worse. I wish that blockchain will democratize currency. You should have the option to use alternative currencies to the centralized monetary systems. This can empower people all over the world.”
Challenges
“One of the biggest challenges is basic communications. We haven’t see many people who were able to explain the great work of the technical community to the masses. This is what the Chamber does. Communication. Come together as a community. We should agree on basic issues, like scaling. We should be more personal than just chat rooms. Making this real needs to happen. We need to spend more time and effort on this.”