When asked what is Grantcoin, it is a digital currency designed to create a dedicated funding stream and loyal customer base for socially and environmentally responsible businesses. However, to give the Bitcoin community a more in-depth view of it, we spoke with Brandon Venetta, Co-Founder of Grantcoin.
Coin News: Every Bitcoin enthusiast has gone through a journey, can you tell us a litte bit about yours?
Brandon Venetta: Bitcoin showed that it’s possible for people to create a viable alternative currency and financial network with millions of participants around the world. If we don’t agree with the way governments and banks have set up the monetary system, we the people can create a better alternative. Blockchain technology gives power back to the people to decide how money should work and to make financial decisions in a transparent way. The Grantcoin team is dedicated to creating positive change by making digital currency a people-powered tool to incentivize a more sustainable, equitable, and humane global economy.
CNA: How long did it take you to launch your business? What are some specific challenges you’ve encountered in mounting it?
BV: It took us about 8 months to develop Grantcoin, from the time our team came together in the fall of 2014 until we launched in May 2015. This included setting up the nonprofit organization that manages the project, developing a business plan and marketing strategy, technical research and development, and more. So far, the biggest challenge Grantcoin has faced is attracting enough volunteers on the technical side. Our project appeals to people on a philosophical level, because of our ideas for an alternative currency based on philanthropy and social good. As we continue to grow, we’re confident that resources will come on board to help make Grantcoin a leading cryptocurrency not only in terms of social innovation, but technological as well.
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CNA: What can you say is the best thing about your venture in comparison with other crypto-related ventures? Can you share some definite advantages of operating it?
BV: Grantcoin is engaging major new demographics into the digital currency space — the charitable, nonprofit, and sustainable business sectors. By developing a cryptocurrency which is distributed into circulation as grants to worthy recipients, we are able to appeal to a much larger potential audience than Bitcoin, which is distributed only through mining. Most crypto-related ventures focus more on technology and appeal to an audience that is already interested in Bitcoin, but Grantcoin is leveraging Blockchain technology as a tool to change the world. This can resonate outside the existing crypto community and help to grow the digital currency movement.
CNA: What have been the greatest accomplishments you have had while operating your? What characteristics of your business do you consider the most revolutionary?
BV: Our greatest accomplishments to date are all the relationships that we’re forming with like-minded individuals and organizations. Many people are seeing the value in a cryptocurrency project that is founded and guided by a nonprofit organization with equal economic opportunity, environmental sustainability, and human wellbeing as its core values and purpose. The most revolutionary aspect of Grantcoin is our plan to fairly distribute the currency globally; it is the first currency ever created to have a set amount of the tokens reserved for distribution by the people of each nation based on population.
CNA: How do you think Bitcoin will affect the Asian market in particular?
BV: The Asian market has already been impacted greatly by Bitcoin. It is difficult to predict what will unfold in the future, but we believe there is great potential for cryptocurrency to penetrate further into Asian markets and communities. Our hope is that the next phase of development of cryptocurrency in Asia will be less of a speculative bubble, as with Bitcoin in 2013, and more sustainable in the long term.
To be continued…
