Blockcast.cc: Welcome to our weekly interview segment with blockchain and cryptocurrency people. Hi Mark, can you share with us your hobbies and what you do during your leisure time?
Mark: Designing and writing are my hobbies. This is also a big part of what I do for a living. So I feel blessed I can truly say, I turned my hobby into a living. But I also have a ‘real’ hobby: taking care of two tropical geckos (Phelsuma Laticauda), that live in a rainforest enclosure in our livingroom. Basically a little piece of Madagascar at home. Other than that, I love the city life: dining out with friends, going to bars and clubs. The usual fun stuff. :)
Blockcast.cc: What do you do for a living in the crypto space now?
Mark: I left the Zilliqa team back in February, but I definitely didn’t leave the global Zilliqa community. I feel community-driven marketing and business development are very important, so my focus now is doing a bit of corporate and community hustling for Zilliqa and its ecosystem partners (like for example Aqilliz) in Northwestern Europe. Next to that, I’m helping a couple of blockchain-related projects to build their brand, and I’m also exploring the emerging Non-Fungible Token (NFT) space as a creative entrepreneur.
Blockcast.cc: Tell us about your work with Zilliqa. I understand that you were the head of marketing. You must have witnessed a lot of exciting times at $ZIL.
Mark: During my time at Zilliqa, my focus was on building a consistent and distinctive brand for Zilliqa. I also helped to grow the Zilliqa macom team, in order to have a bigger impact in the blockchain space and beyond. Zilliqa has incredible tech, but I always felt it lacked a bit of storytelling before the mainnet launch at the beginning of 2019. So when I joined the team back in June 2019, transforming Zilliqa into a more visible and appealing ‘love brand’ has always been my goal. The focus - even from a technical point of view - has always been on contributing to a more inclusive and eco-friendly world. This is why I personally felt in love with the project back in 2018.
And yes, working in the blockchain and crypto space is definitely ‘exciting', which to be honest is even an understatement. It’s crazy.
Blockcast.cc: What is your vision ahead for the crypto industry?
Mark: Blockchain and crypto are here to stay. I’m very pleased to see the industry is maturing at an incredible speed. I think blockchain technology will have a profound impact on how we live, work and play in the next decades to come. I hope blockchain - along with AI - will change the world for the better. This might sound like a paradox, but I honestly believe the digital transformation will actually help us to become more human. The Industrial Revolution brought a lot of progress, but it alienated many people from their lives, by turning them into some sort of ‘human robots’. We need to flip the script.
Blockcast.cc: When do you think blockchain technology will hit its highest adoption point? Is it now?
Mark: To be honest, I think the party hasn’t even started yet. It will most likely be a multi-themed party, and at this point in time, we’re still exploring the themes. However, I feel the save the date notification has already been sent to the world. In short: we’ll have a blast, and everyone is invited!
Blockcast.cc: In your opinion, which are the 5 most promising coins and why?
Mark: Obviously $ZIL, but I’m also exploring coins like $KNC, $KAVA, $TRAC, and $TEL. I believe doing your own research (DYOR) is imperative in crypto, so I don’t feel my personal view on these project actually matters. Moreover, I don’t want people to buy any coin, just because I think it’s interesting. I can be wrong. Not wrong about $ZIL though. ;)
Blockcast.cc: Do you think stable coin will have a future? If yes why, if no why?
Mark: I think stable coins will help to build a bridge to the traditional financial industry. In general, I think regulation is the way forward for the blockchain industry. Because disruption doesn’t necessarily mean the destruction of the old framework; it can also be more of a transformational process. Stable coins can be a great tool for getting adoption for crypto because stable coins are best suited for doing real-world business.
Blockcast.cc: Do you think Tether will emerge as the top coin in terms of market capitalisation? Share your views on this.
Mark: I can definitely see the use case for Tether at this point, but I’m still in doubt about Tether in the long run. It’s complicated.
Blockcast.cc: If you can make changes to the crypto and blockchain industry, what are the 3 things that you want to change immediately?
Mark: 1.) end tribalism, 2.) focus on delivering real-world business cases, and 3.) stop calling people ‘users’. It’s annoying because it makes it look like technology is about tech, instead of people.
Blockcast.cc: Please share with us an inspiring quote.
Mark: One of my favourite quotes is from a movie called ‘Cash Back’ (2006): ‘Love is there if you want it to be. You just have to see that it's wrapped in beauty and hidden away between the seconds of your life. If you don't stop for a minute, you might miss it.’
Blockcast.cc: Our love for crypto will not stop anytime soon. Let's embrace the good times. It is nice catching up with Mark this morning. Blockcast.cc is a media and marketing company, we have managed to create trust and handhold many leading crypto companies in the market. For information on on our services, please go to www.blockcast.cc/about. You can also find more interviews at www.blockcast.cc/interviews.