No, he didn’t invent doublethink
They don’t call him “Two Brains” for nothing. Financial Times editor Martin Wolf is considered a thought leader in the industry when it comes to dollars and cents, and for good reason. He tackles the Fintech topic in this essay, and his two brains want to tell you it’s a great development. Reasons? For starters: eliminating the unnecessarily costly and time-consuming middle man, i.e. banks, and the growth of big data, which helps insurance companies.
Cue the spaghetti western music
Just like the old Wild West had its epic showdowns, there’s bound to be confrontation in the new Wild West of internet technology. Take Bitcoin, for instance, where the 42 big banks making up the R3 CEV consortium are starting to look into the many forms of blockchain technology, including “privatizing” it. This isn’t going over well with Bitcoin Maximalists – as they’re called – who feel this tech should be free and open to anyone with a computer instead of utilizing it as a private currency between private parties.
The Sahara it ain’t, but…
What goes up must come down, and it certainly applies in this case. The venture funding surge in Fintech was unmistakable last year, and 2016 is projected to see more of the same. However, while Q2 and Q3 each saw nearly $5 billion injected into startups in the sector in 2015, Q4 saw a relatively meagre $1.7 billion in new money. It’s not exactly shriveling up, but a 63% drop is still significant when compared with a 29% decline in overall tech funding.
Sherlock proof?
For the shady minded people, there’s opportunity for crime in everything. The main charge against Bitcoin usage is that it’s a promotion of anonymous financial exchange and, consequently, those who like to fly under law’s radar are more likely to use it for their own gain. But as this article so clearly puts it: “The paradox of cryptocurrency is that its associated data create a forensic trail that can suddenly make your entire financial history public information.”
Don’t beat ‘em; profit off of ‘em
Consider this paradox: capitalism thrives when there’s community. As a Forbes article states, we’ve already seen industrial conglomerates, digital conglomerates and Internet conglomerates. Now, with blockchain tech quickly becoming a staple in finance management, decentralized conglomerates (DC) are becoming a reality. In short, different companies join forces in a common platform – in this case, blockchain – and profit.
Until next week, keep practicing your Clint Squint…
