▲ Incubator Series
By: Gabriel Dusil, Co-founder & Board Member, Adel
Jessica Allen, Blockchain Enthusiast & Social Media Expert
Blockchain Startup Expertise
With most new technologies, it's rare that mainstream investors dive in and take risks with the unfamiliar and untested. Organized crime, on the other hand, will invest in cutting-edge technologies to drive their initiatives, just like any legitimate business. Criminals use the internet, mobile phones , encryption technology, instant messaging, and social media. But none of these technologies have sustained a bad reputation like Bitcoin.
From its launch in 2009, bad press has littered headlines involving Bitcoin, partially due to the Silk Road marketplace , the Darknet , and other platforms that maintain their anonymity, finance terrorism, traffic drugs and allow them to launder money. During this period, investment capital in blockchain was a mere 93 Million US$ in blockchain investments according to CB Insights .
From 2014 to early 2016, VC funding increased tenfold to over 993 million US$. A report by FinTech Global shows 2016 alone closing with half a billion US$ in funding. Within this figure, non-finance related blockchain projects increased by 325% compared to 2015, confirming that blockchain is more than just a FinTech phenomenon. Despite healthy growth, Bitcoin continues to have a negative reputation to some. What is needed to grow venture capital funding to $5 billion, $50 billion and beyond? One approach led by the blockchain incubator, Adel Ecosystem, Ltd. , has been to establish standard business practices to attract mainstream investors and business experts. Their vision is to develop projects with a commitment to a philosophy of integrity and regulatory compliance.
Despite bad press, Bitcoin has established a niche success. Creating this market presence was inspired by a vision of a stateless and decentralized currency. Similar to how Skype disrupted international calling revenue and Facebook and Twitter uprooted journalism the notion of decentralizing money hadn’t been considered until Satoshi Nakamoto’s white paper in 2008. Until this point money was considered authoritarian, not to be challenged. Bitcoin continues to be a contentious issue for governments and banks. But those same institutions recognize the value of blockchain as a technology.
However, blockchain is far from a mainstream success. Its relative newness, combined with scams, hacks, anonymity and legalities, prevent blockchain and cryptocurrencies from becoming a “household” technology. Angel and VC funding communities currently view blockchain as too complex and volatile to be considered a viable investment vehicle.
To pull blockchain out of the Darknet stigma, an era of integrity is required. According to Market and Markets , blockchain technology will be worth 2.3 billion US$ by 2021, and is expected to grow at a Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 61.5 percent. It is the collective responsibility of Adel to change the perception of blockchain and cryptocurrency and to legitimize this technology by creating ethical, moral, and legal platforms. Ethics and compliance will fuel a wave of mainstream investors entering the crypto industry and establish confidence with serious investors. Besides regulatory oversight, this responsibility lies in equal measure with blockchain service providers. Sustainable and profitable services, in the long term, establish confidence with the mainstream investment community.
Figure #1: Idea to Business Plan to Projects - Life Cycle
Co-founder and board member, Gabriel Dusil added, “At Adel, we set out to create a powerful blockchain ecosystem with a spirit of integrity. Our aim is to have passionate and talented members who have a collective goal to be successful. Our approach to achieve this goal is through a platform that incentivises the contribution of ideas, converts those ideas into business plans, and launches profitable projects.”
About the Authors
Gabriel Dusil
Gabriel is a seasoned sales and marketing expert with over twenty years of experience in senior level positions at companies such as Motorola, VeriSign (part of Symantec), and SecureWorks (part of Dell). His strengths lie in international business development and strategic partnerships, as well as the unique ability to translate complex ideas and technologies into language that decision makers can easily understand. Gabriel has a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering Physics from McMaster University in Canada and possesses expert knowledge in cloud computing, IT security, and video streaming technologies (Over the Top Content, OTT). Gabriel also runs his own company, Euro Tech Startups s.r.o., and manages two blogs: https://dusil.com/ and https://gabrieldusil.com/.
Jessica Allen
Jessica is a blockchain enthusiast and social media community expert with over 25 years of technology and 15 years of digital marketing experience. As a mother of two, Jess is passionate about blockchain’s potential to innovate industries, unite communities and create a sustainable global economy. She brings the ability to create conversations with anyone, at any level, about blockchain use cases and potential. Jess is active on social media @TheJessAllen and volunteers her time with the Isha Foundation to help share the benefits of yoga and meditation as fundamental tools for human transformation.
References
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organized_crime#Pre-nineteenth_century
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silk_Road_marketplace
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darknet
https://www.cbinsights.com/research-blockchain-transcript
https://www.cbinsights.com/
http://fintech.global/blockchain-cryptocurrency-startups-hit-record-funding-in-2016
www.adelphoi.io
http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/blockchain-technology-market-90100890.html