On May 14-16, New York hosted the largest event in the world of digital currencies and Blockchain – Consensus 2018. The conference was attended by 250 speakers and experts, and the number of visitors reached 8,000 people. It should be recalled that at last year conference, Consensus 2017, the number of listeners was only 2700.
And in this article we want to highlight the main news from Consensus 2018.
The President and CEO of New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) James Patchett wants to make New York the capital of the blockchain technology development. The official intends to create the NYC Blockchain Resource Center, which will educate the public about blockchain, as well as help participants in the crypto-exchange community to interact with each other.
"We’re a global leader in finance, real estate, media, and tech – all industries seeing incredible innovation from this new technology. The city is putting a big focus into blockchain to find out how we can grow the industry and make sure it’s creating great opportunities for New Yorkers," said James Patchett.
Also, a public contest was launched to promote the development of municipal services with the help of blockchain. The competition will start in late 2018.
During the conference, the Winklevoss brothers announced that they added ZCash, Bitcoin Cash and Litecoin cryptocurrencies to their Gemini exchange. Gemini has become "the first licensed exchange in the world", which supports a privacy-focused cryptocurrency.
Many experts forecasted the growth of cryptocurrency rates during the conference and after it. However, the rate of BTC and other cryptocurrencies continued to fall. For example, during Consensus 2017 Bitcoin spiked by 69%, and after it – by 138%.
Such a behaviour of cryptocurrencies this year can be explained by the fact that there were no important statements at the conference directly affecting the cryptocurrencies rate. Speakers basically shared their views and future plans for digital currencies and the blockchain technology. The lack of regulatory clarity for cryptocurrencies also prevents their growth.
Tom Lee, an analyst in Fundstrat Global Advisors, who himself predicted the rise in cryptocurrencies, is sure in the following:
"Despite the fact that the rally did not happen, during the Consensus 2018, the cryptocurrencies as a whole "became stronger".
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin refused to attend Consensus 2018 due to the fact that CoinDesk, the conference organizer, promoted giveaway scams. Also, Buterin was confused with the high cost of the Consensus 2018 ticket, which amounted to $ 3000.
Participants of the conference were puzzled when they saw the elite cars of the Lamborghini brand near the conference venue. People supposed that the conference speakers arrived there on such vehicles. However, as it turned out, the cars were rented by the organizers of Consensus 2018 and exhibited just to attract attention.
Consensus 2018 was rather not a large-scale fundamental event that would affect the cryptocurrency, but just a social circuit where people could talk about digital currencies. However, in general, it can be said that experts see the future in the blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies and they are trying to create ideal conditions for their functioning.
by , 2018.05.24
This article reflects a personal opinion and should not be interpreted as an investment advice, and/or offer, and/or a persistent request for carrying out financial transactions, and/or a guarantee, and/or a forecast of future events.
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