What motivates you in crypto? Do you trade, do you build? Do you want to make the world a better place? All of the above? I’ve been in the space for a few years, and yes sometimes, you can lose motivation, all the scams, the wasted VC money… where’s the value? Two topics have made me pause to think this month, doing business with Turkey and the Tornado Cash developments in the USA.
Yes, crypto as peer to peer electronic cash makes sense. Sending fiat to Turkey, if your bank even allows it, will cost an arm and a leg, take days… let alone the extortionist exchange rates… Yes, crypto adoption as peer to peer electronic cash is still the best use case in my opinion. (I’ll pause here before I dive into transaction fees, which crypto to use and the onboarding experience)
Another, heart breaking moment, the arrest of Roman Storm, while Roman Semenov is now on the run. Two Tornado Cash developers, living in the USA that had been unbothered so far, as we delved into the Alexey Pertsev case here in the Netherlands. Both charged with money laundering and violating sanctions, while working on Tornado Cash. They are accused of "facilitated more than $1 billion in money laundering," including "hundreds of millions" for North Korea's Lazarus Group. My response? Expect CryptoCanal to get more political, in the meantime, a throwback to my talk at ETHPrague:
Match Making 💕
Are you looking for a job? Searching for a dev to join your team? Have a look at our Match Making Tool, a simple excel spreadsheet to help you find that special someone.
Mark your calendars! 📆
September 20th - Crypto Drinks Zürich
For our Swiss people, catch Nicoletta as the usual spot at the Bierwerk, in Zürich for some beers!
September 27th - OtterTank a Pitching Night in Amsterdam 🦦
Introducing a new meetup format, OtterTank! A special night, to gather startups, investors and a panel of Otters.
Our Otters, David Truong, Thijs van Boven (VanEck) and Justin Bons (Cyber Capital) will be tasked with asking the hard questions in search of value!
We will be picking the startups this week, this is your last reminder to have a chance to pitch during this upcoming event, on September 27th at De Nieuwe Anita in Amsterdam.
Can’t make it this time? No worries, this is a recurring format, the next OtterTank editions will take place on January 31st and April 24th 2024.
November 15th - DeFiBoat connecting the best of DeFi on the Bosphorus
Jump on board for a Devconnect event
Welcoming speakers from MakerDAO, Chainway and more to come
With the support of our Captain Summer.Fi and Sailor Ajna
Do you know about our experiential in person workshop covering the basics of crypto and blockchain for teams?
Easy and accessible
In person and cosy
Learn by doing
Tailored to your needs
Powered by Nicoletta and myself, we will be hosting pilot program in Amsterdam this fall, reach out if you want to be tested on.
“If you don't know, the thing to do is not to get scared, but to learn.”
― Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged