Gemini’s new HQ in Ireland as part of Euro expansion
Cryptocurrency exchange Gemini has announced Ireland as its European headquarters amidst regulatory uncertainty in the US.
Co-founder of Fortnite Tim Sweeney made comments on blockchain-based assets offering that the market has potential but are currently far too speculative to step into that potential just yet.
In a tweet, Sweeney noted that the technology behind non-fungible tokens (known as NFTs) and the “metaverse” is in the position where it might make it one day, but currently, the space is looking like a “wild, speculative mess”.
Sweeney made the comments in response to a blog post by Delphi Digital partner Piers Kicks about how new digital currencies based on blockchain and the drive towards in-game economies have massive possibilities. One of the key takeaways from the blog post is that cryptocurrencies offer assurance away from the distrust of institutions and that NFTs represent fuller ownership of assets:
“Decentralized networks provide a unique and unmatchable degree of assurance, whilst a universal erosion of trust in institutions is forcing the desire for alternatives. NFTs on top of them enable a standardized universal digital representation and ownership layer for any natively digital “thing” such as game assets, digital art, or domain space.”
As Kicks noted in the blog:
“In the coming decades, a new era of virtual existence will be ushered in marking our next great milestone as a networked species.”
Crypto tech going places
Sweeney commented that the blog post has worthwhile takeaways and that the tech offers a path towards a future where individuals are in charge of their own possibilities and free from gatekeeping:
A great Piers Kicks article on blockchain based underpinnings for an open Metaverse. This is the most plausible path towards an ultimate long term open framework where everyone’s in control of their own presence, free of gatekeeping.https://t.co/Fi6kweNDjj
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) January 30, 2021
He offered a follow-up disclaimer, however, noting that this is not an endorsement for crypto investment, but there are possibilities in the tech:
“1) The state of the art is far from the 60Hz transactional medium needed for 100M’s of concurrent users in a real-time 3D simulation
2) Don’t read this as an endorsement of cryptocurrency investment; that’s a wild, speculative mess
But the tech is going places.”