The cryptocurrency space has grown with the rise of decentralized finance (DeFi). So much so the DeFi space now has ecosystems that take care of the usability issues that are common to many people.
The Divi project is one of such ecosystems.
The Divi Project recently partnered with Stakehound to allow staking and the receipt of rewards as well.
E-Crypto News reached out to Geoffrey McCabe, the CEO of the Divi Project to talk about the DeFi space and a host of issues.
Here is what he had to say.
Geoffrey McCabe, CEO of the Divi Project
E-Crypto News:
Congratulations on the new partnership! What’s next for the Divi project?
Thank you! Our primary focus now is delivering the mobile solution we’ve been working tirelessly on. This new mobile wallet will enable users to stake, run masternodes, send and receive some of their favorite coins, and much more is coming down the pipeline. We are working towards some new exchange listings and partnerships.
E-Crypto News:
How is enabling token wrapping an advantage to the Divi project?
From a high level, wrapping $DIVI on various blockchains is part of our “Divi Everywhere” strategy. We believe that a widespread presence across many different niches throughout the industry will be paramount to our long-term growth and success.
For our coin holders, wrapped tokens give them new opportunities to use and earn Divi in novel ways. Liquidity Mining, DeFi lending, and more are among the wrapped token use-cases.
Additionally, the scarcity created by more and more coin holders wrapping their $DIVI is a very attractive prospect to many.
E-Crypto News:
What is the Divi project about? What can users do within the Divi ecosystem?
At Divi we’re on a mission to make crypto easy and accelerate its mainstream adoption. While cryptocurrencies have the power to revolutionize the way we use money and deliver a better, fairer financial system and future, this can’t happen the way things are now.
Crypto platforms are too slow, the fees too high, onboarding and usage too complex, and it’s all too easy to make a mistake and lose money.
If Crypto is to win, it has to be better than the alternatives. By removing barriers to entry, innovating new frictionless technologies, and delivering use cases for the developed and developing world, we are helping people across the globe to engage in this new economy and achieve financial freedom and inclusion.
E-Crypto News:
Do you think DeFi’s growth will continue? Please tell us the reasons for your answer.
It’s no secret that DeFi has grown exponentially over the past couple of years (although it has existed for much longer).
The general mantra of DeFi resonates with the tenets upon which cryptocurrency is built. Financial sovereignty, beating the banks, etc. all contribute to DeFi’s success.
That said, the space has become quite saturated and it becomes harder and harder to sift through the noise. I believe it will continue to grow but needs to consolidate and mature a bit.
E-Crypto News:
What are the new uses that are enabling the growth of the DeFi industry? Are we going to continue to see innovation drive this growth? Please tell us the reasons for your answer.
When you consider how many financial and banking services exist that can be re-imagined by DeFi, it’s hard to see the innovation slowing down any time soon.
From a trading perspective, a seemingly endless number of derivatives, synthetic assets, and tokens can be created. From a FinTech perspective, every service your bank or financial institution provides can be made better by DeFi.
Now that we see more main-chain coins doing wrapped variants on the various chains, we will begin to see more interesting use-cases driving growth as well as new interoperability solutions that we haven’t seen thus far.
E-Crypto News:
Please, can you tell us more about the Divi user experience?
Everything we do is driven by our ‘made easy’ philosophy and our mission to solve the issues of usability and accessibility that have frustrated mainstream adoption.
Our mobile wallet, which will launch imminently embodies everything we stand for. Including a host of tech Innovations and quality of life improvements it will redefine the mobile user experience.
The wallet is multi coin and currency, includes readable addresses that will take the risk out of sending and receiving cryptocurrency, mobile staking vaults and the company’s patent-pending 1-click masternode technology that will enable users to start earning rewards at the click of a button.
It’s best-in-class user experience pushes the blockchain to the background, creating a familiar and naturally intuitive experience for users without compromising on security and custodianship. And that’s just phase one.
This year, we also intend to incorporate Fiat on-ramping making it easy to buy cryptocurrencies and convert them back to traditional currencies again, banking facilities, additional coins and much, much more.
E-Crypto News:
How does the Divi project help the adoption of cryptocurrencies?
To trigger mass adoption and live up to Satoshi Nakamoto’s original vision, which we uphold, crypto has to offer everyday utility, and this is precisely where Divi is making a big impact.
To gain buy-in on a mass scale, you have to fit with people’s lifestyles. You can’t expect them to change behaviour. In terms of technology, we have developed a proprietary masternode system that can be set up with a single click.
It ensures the average user with little to no technical expertise can participate in a cryptocurrency network and run full nodes. Users can choose from the five levels of participation depending on how involved they want to be in the network.
Additionally our new wallet aims to remove friction and consolidate finance into one app. With human readable addresses and best in class UX, the ability to move seamlessly between fiat and crypto, we want anyone and everyone to be able to participate.
E-Crypto News:
When it comes to Proof-of-Work (PoW) vs. Proof-of-Stake (PoS) which of these consensus protocols do you think will rule the cryptospace in the coming years? Please tell us the reasons for your answer.
Proof of Stake is likely to become more and more dominant, as we have already seen the top projects in the space moving in this direction or deploying implementations based on this consensus algorithm.
It’s actually highly likely that DPoS (delegated proof of stake) takes precedence. Despite its relatively centralized nature, its scalability, speed, and efficiency have proven to be very attractive.
ETH is moving away from PoW and very few new projects are opting for PoW due to its overall ecological impact, staggering hardware requirements, and generally high barriers to entry.
E-Crypto News:
Tell us about your other technology interests. What technology niche are you most interested in, and why does the niche capture your interest?
I’ve always been a technophile but recently I am heavily involved with the NFT space through a video game project called Siege Worlds and a digital comic project called Lightning Works. I also enjoy reading about VR and play VR games when time allows.
E-Crypto News:
When it comes to Stablecoins vs. Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) which of these digital asset token niches do you think are needed? Which of them do you think will rule the industry, and why do you think so?
Considering the latest guidance from the FATF (Financial Action Task Force), it seems the stage is being set for CBDCs. Stablecoins are an important aspect of the cryptocurrency industry, however it’s likely that most, if not all, will be regulated out of existence in favor of CBDCs. This outcome isn’t one that I relish but it is realistic.
E-Crypto News:
What problems do you think decentralized finance (DeFi) aims to solve?
Banks and Financial Institutions take your money and charge you for storing it, using it, and borrowing it. You never receive any benefit when they lend your money out, use it for investments, or otherwise realize profit on it.
DeFi puts the power back in the hands of the individual by allowing them to participate in whichever financial services they choose and earn something as a result.
E-Crypto News:
How can cryptocurrencies solve global problems?
Cryptocurrencies are the key to solving the challenges faced by the unbanked and people who live in countries where they are experiencing a drastic devaluation of their local fiat currency. At Divi we take these issues very seriously.
Our community is driving real-world initiatives by using our currency, platform, and technology.The Divi Green Project in Venezuela has established a circular economy that’s improving living standards.
The Spaghetti Project in the Philippines provides hot meals to local residents, and the Khayletisha Cycles Project has ensured essential workers and children in Cape Town can travel safely during lockdown.
We are exploring ways to further expand the number of projects and often become a prominent proponent in making them a success by helping to raise funding.
E-Crypto News:
Do you think the cryptocurrency space is a “parallel universe” to the regular existence? Please tell us the reasons for your answer and how best can the two divergent ecosystems be merged?
I think the universes are beginning to merge. Services like the Divi Wallet, which aims to be hybrid, compliant, financial ecosystems will help accelerate this merger.
It’s important that technology that pushes the blockchain to the background, so to speak, begins coming out and attracts folks of all skill sets and interest levels to the space.
E-Crypto News:
How did you get involved with the cryptospace?
In 2014 I bought my first Bitcoin and Ripple, and rapidly my Ripple was stolen in a hack. I wasn’t even sure of the difference between wallets and exchanges at the time and I was really annoyed by how confusing everything in the crypto space was.
I vowed that if I ever got involved with building a crypto-based technology, I’d focus on the user-friendly element, which I considered to be the biggest barrier to mass adoption. In 2017 I got my chance to start Divi and so we have been focused ever since on the usability aspect.
E-Crypto News:
Where do you see the Divi project in the next five to ten years?
While I can’t make any predictions regarding the price, I do believe that our solutions are generally regarded as “game-changers” for the space at large.
Because we’re focusing so heavily on making all of crypto easier and more accessible, there’s no reason many coins and communities won’t become a part of our ecosystem.
We have already taken a low-raising token sale of around 2.1M and turned it into hundreds of millions in value for our community, I can only imagine that growth trajectory will continue.
E-Crypto News:
What are your thoughts on the increasing cost of transactions currently occurring on the Ethereum blockchain? How can Layer-2 solutions help mitigate these high costs?
Fees on ETH have been an issue for quite some time. Even when we were running our token sale back in 2017, we were met with many challenges due to ETH network congestion.
In my opinion, whether L2 solutions are adequate or not, there shouldn’t be an entire business model around solving the issue when it can and should be solved at the protocol level. ETH 2.0 will hopefully come at some point and resolve this with their Proof of Stake implementation.
However, many other blockchains are already implementing such frameworks and beginning to see some traction.
E-Crypto News:
What advice do you have for anyone who wants to become a part of the cryptocurrency industry full-time?
Being in crypto full-time takes a lot of dedication. If you’re looking for an easy out from your day job, this isn’t it.
It’s as rewarding as it is challenging but it is certainly not for the weak hearted. This industry operates 24/7/365 at the highest possible frequency. Hold on for dear life.
E-Crypto News:
Do you think cryptocurrencies and their underlying technologies will rule the world? Please tell us the reasons for your answer.
Blockchain is already incredibly pervasive in both industrial and military contexts. The U.S. Navy (and I’m sure others) are already utilizing blockchain for supply chain tracking.
IBM among others are implementing blockchain for similar use-cases. Digital currencies will certainly be a primary mode of commerce in the future but they may or may not use blockchain.
I do believe global cryptocurrencies that are not mandated or federated by governments will continue to thrive as they empower people in ways we have never seen before.
I don’t think one or the other will “rule the world” but instead exist in some semblance of hybrid harmony.
E-Crypto News:
Where do you see the cryptocurrency and allied technology space in the next five-to-ten years?
We will soon reach a critical mass of cryptocurrency users all the way from the institutional level down to main street.
I believe this will happen within the next five years. Within ten years, it will be as if we never lived without them.
E-Crypto News:
If you had three wishes and a Genie that could make them come true, what would your wishes be for the cryptocurrency space?
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For a stronger focus to be put on products that deliver true value to the many rather than passing opportunity for the few.
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For regulations to be implemented in responsible ways that make sense from a functional, technological, and global perspective.
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For everyone to discover Divi of course!
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