This week in crypto. August 16-22: How crypto can help Afghanistan, wine NFTs and more…
What’s happening in Afghanistan is tragic, and unfortunately it might get much worse. The Taliban regime is probably the worst kind of dictatorship, and it would badly impact all the Afghans.
Of course, crypto cannot be a magical remedy for the situation. It can, however, improve certain pain points and help people regain at least some control over their lives, starting with control over their money.
Not your keys, not your money
This week thousands of Afghans rushed to the banks in hope of withdrawing their money, often in order to help them flee the country. They were met by confused bank employees who could not explain why the banks don’t have cash and ended up creating huge waiting lines all over Kabul. Bank offices that have been already taken by the Talibans were also beyond hope.
This situation that stripped so many people of their savings could have been avoided with crypto: by putting their money on a blockchain and retaining their private key, people can access it from any part of the world, which is extremely important for the refugees of all sorts.
Empowering women
While the Taliban drama is impacting everyone, the Afghan women and girls will definitely suffer the most.
Afghanistan is still one of the most patriarchal societies that continually oppresses women, but over the last 20 years they have managed to earn a tiny bit of independence. One of the important actors in this process was Roya Mahboob, an extraordinary activist… and a crypto enthusiast.
Starting as a female CEO of a software firm in Afghanistan, she definitely knows the struggles, and Bitcoin was one of the tools she used to overcome them, notably for payments. She also used crypto to improve the lives of many Afghan women through her different ventures. One of her companies, Women’s Annex, encouraged Afghan women to write blogs, payable in crypto (99% of female writers didn’t have a bank account). Another, Digital Citizen Fund, is teaching Afghan girls about blockchain technology, coding, and financial literacy in its 13 women-only IT Centers. The fund famously sponsored the Afghan Girls Robotic team, which won a silver medal in a US robotics competition in 2017 and a gold medal in Estonia for a solar-powered farmer robot. As of now, the team has been evacuated to Qatar.
The Talibans aren’t likely to tolerate educated girls and will do anything to condemn them to invisibility and total submission. Under their rule women cannot work, have an ID, leave the house without men… In such conditions the only way to live a life is online, and those who have computer and Internet access can even find work (Roya Mahboob’s courses would prove to be of great help!). In such situation crypto is the only way these women can get paid, and when they do, the crypto will belong to them and not their husbands. Having an independent and not conspicuous income source can be life-changing (and life-saving) for many oppressed women.
Donate
Not everyone has the means or the skills to work online, though, and for many people the best option is to run, even if it would eventually put them at the mercy of another country and NGOs.
Blockchain development company The Giving Block provides a crypto payment gateway for charities, and everyone can easily donate cryptocurrencies to their partners, such as CARE and Hearts & Homes for Refugees that help displaced families, or Code to Inspire that empowers young women by teaching them to code. Roya Mahboob’s Digital Citizen Fund that works on educating girls in developing countries accepts crypto donations by default.
An increasing number of charities now accept crypto, for it is the perfect way for people in different parts of the globe to contribute to a cause that matters.
Art and NFT
D.Center is based in France, so the one topic we cannot omit is wine – especially if it comes with an NFT attached.
Blockchain has been used for many years already in the wine industry to secure the provenance, but NFTs is a recent trend. Premium wines are being sold as NFTs, with a lucky owner enjoying not only the bottle, but also an artwork attached, a conservation service, or even a part in a vinery – imagination is the limit when it comes to tokens.
With the ownership right in form of NFT investing in wine and trading it is becoming much easier than before, and an increasing number of winemakers get it: Pommier from Bordeaux, Yao Wines from the Californian Napa Valley, Maquina y Tabla from Spain, Solomone Dzelshavi from Georgia…
Markets
Bitcoin
Bitcoin price gained another 6% this week, breaking through the $50k on Sunday night. This is the fifth weekly green candle in a row.
The exchanges are seeing positive inflow of stablecoins (data by CryptoQuant), and a net outflow of bitcoins (data by Glassnode), which could suggest that more investors are seeking to buy crypto, while those who already bought it intend to HODL in their own wallets or use in the DeFi. This gives a positive outlook for Bitcoin price.
Ethereum
Ethereum traded sideways, ending the week at approximately the same point as it started: $3300.
Quote of the week
“This is why we’ve been working in high schools all these years. If young people can learn about computers, they can learn about bitcoin. And now everybody wants to learn how to access bitcoin. They need to.”
Roya Mahboob, IT entrepreneur, Afghan activist and crypto enthusiast