Year in Review 2019


Finance

Why China Is Banning Crypto but Is Bullish on Blockchain

"The bandit needs to be wiped out before the regular army gets in," says Flex Yang, co-founder and CEO of Babel Finance, speaking of China's uncertain crypto regulations.

Flex Yang, co-founder of Babel Finance

Tech

Store of Value Remains Crypto’s Best Use Case

Store of value was the most viable and desirable use case across crypto in 2019 and offers a basis to increase adoption in the second decade of crypto, says Ryan Zurrer of Dialectic.

Ryan Zurrer image via CoinDesk archives

Policy

Gemini's Head of Risk on How Crypto Beats Traditional Finance

The arc of crypto bends toward regulation, so we might as well be prepared, says Gemini's risk chief and the president of the Virtual Commodities Association, Yusuf Hussain.

Yusuf Hussain, head of risk at Gemini and president of the Virtual Commodities Association

Policy

How Libra Failed, and How It Could Succeed in 2020

Libra was the seminal crypto event of 2019, says management consultant Richie Hecker. But, in its current form, it is doomed to fail.

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Markets

Professor Ben Noys: What Crypto Sees in Accelerationism

Benjamin Noys found a link between fringe, online philosophies and digital-native currencies. Here, he explains "accelerationism."

Benjamin Noys, professor of critical theory at University of Chichester

Policy

While We Wait for Laws, We Need Better Interpretations of Existing Regulation

Congress isn't likely to pass crypto-favorable legislation in 2020. In the meantime, we have to hope for action from the SEC.

William Mougayar

Policy

Even If Blockchain Can't Secure Land Rights, It Got Us Talking About Them

Anand Aanchal of the World Bank thinks blockchain spurred an interest in securing land rights but often falls short of expectations.

Aanchal Anand, land administration specialist at the Global Land and Geospatial Unit of the World Bank

Tech

When DeFi Meets Neo Banking, This Thing Gets Interesting

When you combine DeFi with wider trends in fintech, you get an existential threat to banks.

NuoPitch

Tech

Stanford Prof Darrell Duffie on Our Big Stablecoin Future

A distinguished Stanford professor breaks down the year in stablecoins: Libra, Tether and Central Bank Digital Currencies, like China's.

Darrell Duffie, Distinguished Professor of Finance at Stanford

Tech

Pantera Partner Paul Veradittakit's Crypto Predictions for 2020

And a look-back at how his 2019 predictions fared.

Paul Veradittakit speaks at Consensus: Invest 2018, image via CoinDesk archives

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