Storj DEI Council sponsors talk by Cleve Mesidor, Executive Director of The Blockchain Foundation
- Blockchain Foundation’s industry-wide movement
- Development of an accessible digital library with trusted content for education and promotion of legitimate debates
- Coming soon: six-city roadshow collaboration with local organizations
- Differences between consumer protection and financial inclusion
- Consumer protection: primary concern in legislation
- Financial inclusion: enabling more people to participate in finance
- Need for a more inclusive financial system
- Focusing solely on consumer protection can leave communities behind
- Empowering people with tools and resources for wealth creation
- Outdated financial policies harm vulnerable populations
- Call for a presidential commission on financial inclusion to address this issue
- Booming global adoption of digital assets and blockchain
- High adoption rates in Africa, Latin America, and Asia, especially in countries with weak central banks and high inflation
- Mobile phones as entry points for emerging markets and young, digitally native populations
- Importance of inclusivity in financial systems
- Policies pushing marginalized communities out of digital assets lead to less inclusive industry
- Optimism about global future of digital assets and blockchain despite potential challenges in US policy approach
Storj DEI Council recently sponsored a talk by Cleve Mesidor, Executive Director of The Blockchain Foundation. In her presentation, Ms. Mesidor emphasized the potential of decentralized finance (Defi) and the need to balance consumer protection with financial inclusion in the blockchain and cryptocurrency space.
The Blockchain Foundation is leading an industry-wide movement for blockchain and cryptocurrency education. As part of this effort, they are collaborating with local organizations on a six-city roadshow and developing a digital library of trusted content from reputable enterprises. The aim is to create a platform that is accessible for all and to promote legitimate debates and concerns within the content.
During her talk for Storj employees, Ms. Mesidor touched on the differences between consumer protection and financial inclusion. She explained that consumer protection has been the primary concern in cryptocurrency and blockchain legislation, while financial inclusion is about enabling more people, regardless of their background, to participate in finance. Policymakers face the challenge of effectively balancing these two concerns in their legislative approach.
Ms. Mesidor believes that focusing solely on consumer protection can leave certain communities behind and prevent wealth creation. She suggests that taking risks and empowering people with tools and resources is necessary for building wealth. In her view, policies should not only focus on consumer protection but also on building a more inclusive financial system.
Watch the presentation here
Ms. Mesidor emphasized the importance of being honest about how policies can harm vulnerable populations and argued that current financial policies are based on outdated laws from the 1930s. Ms. Mesidor suggests the creation of a presidential commission on financial inclusion to help address this issue.
She also discussed the global adoption of digital assets and blockchain, citing booming adoption in Africa and exploding adoption in Latin America and Asia, particularly in countries with weak central banks and currencies with high inflation. The widespread use of mobile phones in emerging markets and the digital nativity of young populations make them more likely to adapt to new technologies, such as M-Pesa in Kenya.
In closing out the presentation, Ms. Mesidor underscored the importance of a more inclusive financial system that allows everyone to participate, warning that policies that push marginalized communities out of fintech advances will result in a less inclusive industry. While she sees potential challenges in the US policy approach, she remains optimistic about the global future of digital assets and blockchain technologies.
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