The conversation around Cryptocurrency frowng since Bitcoin was launched 15 years ago. It is used as an investment, and more and more businesses are accepting crypto payments. It has enjoyed the greatest success in e-commerce, where websites and online businesses can use payment gateways and other systems to simplify remittance acceptance. It has also become popular with online casino instant payout websites. Not only does it enable fast transactions, but payments can be sent overseas.
Vancouver has a long relationship with Bitcoin, indeed. In 2013, a local coffee shop played host to the world’s first-ever Bitcoin ATM. Investors can deposit cash or use their bank card to buy Bitcoin via the ATM. It can also be used to withdraw cryptocurrency as fiat currency, enabling users to spend some of their holdings.
Physically spending Bitcoin can be a challenge, even in some major cities. Vancouver has more than 100 businesses that accept cryptocurrency, which is not only the largest total number of any city in Canada but also means it has the highest number of crypto businesses per capita. Toronto, which has a population of more than double that of Vancouver only has around 70 crypto businesses. Ottawa has the third-highest number of cryptocurrency businesses at 32.
The Canadian government generally treats cryptocurrency as a security, which means it falls under the same regulations as securities in the country. Recently, the Canadian Securities Administrators have announced updates to the country’s stablecoin regulations. Stablecoins are those that are tied to the value of an existing asset, typically currency. Those changes require that stablecoin issuers now hold reserves with qualified custodians and that they present certain information to investors. The proposed changes have led to Binance, OKX, Paxo, Bybit and, more recently, Gemini exchanges announcing they are exiting the Canadian market.
While exchanges are leaving Canada, the cryptocurrency market in Vancouver has need developmente. MintGreen, a Bitcoin mining company, announced in 2021 that it would start working with Lonsdale Energy Corp to supply North Vancouver with heat generated from its Bitcoin mining operation. One of the critiques levelled at Bitcoin is that the mining process uses a lot of energy. While moves have been made to reduce this, it remains an energy-intensive process. MintGreen uses its patented Digital Boilers to recover virtually all of the electricity it uses in mining as heat, which is then distributed to consumers.
CryptoKitties, which helped put Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) on the map was also founded in Vancouver. The collectibles game was established by Dapper Labs who recently partnered with the NBA to create Top Shot, which is an NFT collection of the NBA’s most memorable and definitive moments from history. Other collections include NFL All Day and upcoming Disney Pinnacle, which will offer digital pins and NFTs from the media giant.
As well as Dapper Labs, another major cryptocurrency and blockchain organization to have found its start in Vancouver is Ripple. Ripple is the seventh largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization with a total capitalization of around $30 billion. Ripple is a digital payment company that runs on the XRP Ledger and it has partnerships with more than 100 financial institutions around the world including the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and Santander.
The University of British Columbia, which is just outside the main city of Vancouver, offers several blockchain and cryptocurrency courses. The Blockchain Microcertificate is an online course that teaches the basics of blockchain technology while the Blockchain Graduate Training Path is a non-degree program that is geared towards those who which to advance Canada’s blockchain industry: it can be integrated into PhD and Master’s courses.
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