- High-profile players in the crypto industry called for a collaboration during the WEF 2023 in Davos, Switzerland
- Cryptocurrency and blockchain were the smaller topics during the event but discussed big matters on Circle and Ripple
- WEF’s focus on the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) framework could help many blockchain and crypto technologies to drive mass adoption
The World Economic Forum 2023 event discussed the pressure of a feared recession, continuous inflation, new policies on payments, and potential driving forces for the future of transactions. Some of those driving forces include the use of blockchain technology.
While most of the key figures in WEF were against cryptocurrency, they were considerate regarding the application of blockchain that could cross the boundaries between fiat and CBDCs (central bank digital currencies). As for the crypto sector, the most general topics were Ripple and Circle.
Ripple, as Part of the WEF
Ripple, the center of attention of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), has been one of the most extensive discussions among panelists and big players in the crypto industry. For context, Ripple’s technology focuses on the cross-transactions between fiat and decentralized cryptocurrency. It was a hot topic because, while the WEF involves the most powerful central banks in the world, some have discussed that they can leverage Ripple in the future.
Since the philosophy of WEF includes the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) framework, Ripple was a relevant issue regarding whether it should consist of CBDCs for a more unified system.
Its rival, Stellar, was also present but had a more positive impact. Instead of being controversial, the competing blockchain project received praise after becoming a committee member for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission as an advisor regarding cryptocurrency.
Brooks Entwistle, the managing director of Ripple, was happy to know that the most critical people were discussing its cross-border transactions because,
“Regulators and banks need to talk about it and why it should be a broader topic than just what’s happening at a night cap here or a panel there along the promenade.”
Circle Regarding the Future of Payments
P2P payments company Circle was also among the present firms in the crypto section of the WEF. Cory Then, vice president of global policy for Circle, told in a Cointelegraph interview that he was happy about the company’s significance in the event.
Primarily, Circle was in the talks for the relevance of its decentralized stablecoin, USDC.
“We’re out there talking to policymakers, we’re talking to traditional companies outside of tech, who are looking at using USDC as a payment solution, we’re talking to tech companies, to figure out how we might integrate with the work that they’re doing. We’re talking to humanitarian organizations.”
He talked with influential UK, EU, Mexico, Singapore, and Japanese policymakers. USDC is one of the biggest stablecoins today, with millions of dollars in trading volume. With potential collaborations with regulators, broadening the stablecoin would mean ownership of money for everyday citizens.
Crypto Panel is Smaller than Last Year
During last year’s WEF, the cryptocurrency section had a huge portion. It even included the now-fallen crypto exchange FTX. However, the crypto firms present during the 2023 event were more proud of being in there than bunched up with the rest of the crypto projects solely made by hype.
Instead, the presence of the present crypto companies in Davos showed that only the most essential and valid projects will stay for the long term, especially now that central authorities would partner with them for future payments in businesses.
