Published in El Pais, 16 Julio 2022.
Things have been better in the crypto world. Many centralized exchanges and lending platforms have halted withdrawals and even declared bankruptcy, leaving many to wonder what would happen to their funds. One exchange, Celsius, has halted withdrawals almost a month ago, and while it has yet to declare bankruptcy, some think it will be only a matter of time before that happens. While this is troubling for many there is a lesson we can learn for the rest of the world, how to use blockchain to have complete transparency.
Since halting withdraws, Celsius has been relatively quite with only vague updates, likely at the insistence of lawyers. This has understandably been a stressful time for the 1.7 million people that have their funds stuck with them and the lack of updates from the companies has not helped. They may have been quiet, but they have been busy, paying off various DeFi loans to unlock liquidity to help their situation.
This is where you may point out a contradiction in my writing, how do I know this if they have not said anything? Simple, every single transaction they do is viewable on the blockchain, meaning like it or not, Celsius cannot do any transactions behind closed doors.
It is this transparency that I feel should be adopted by all financial and government institutions. Such a move, though complicated, would all but eliminate back door deals, bribery and any type of corruption that is unfortunately associated with these organizations. Even in situations where no crime is committed it can also be a useful tool to analyze spending and eliminate waste and redundancy.
Blockchain is more than just cryptocurrency, it is a game changing technology that allows the elimination of trust. It is time we start looking at it more seriously.
Be the first to comment