One of the greatest barriers to entry for cryptocurrency is undoubtedly comprehending it. 

Blockchain technology is difficult to get one’s head around. It has only been around since 2009, so it can also be difficult sometimes to find good resources on where to learn about it. Not only that, but the repeated collapses – the FTX implosion being the latest – put people off looking into it. 

Education is paramount. This is the single biggest thing I noticed when I visited El Salvador this summer, where Bitcoin is legal tender. So many people I talked with had difficulty truly understanding it.

I was told by a Wallmart cashier that I could not pay with Bitcoin because I did not have the government-owned Chivo wallet. This is obviously false, as Bitcoin’s lightning network does not discriminate – you just need a QR code and the Bitcoin will go. It is a decentralised network and there is no such thing as certain wallets not being able to send to other wallets.

One barman also said that he tried to learn about it but gave up after a week because he “didn’t have a computer brain”.

It’s no different outside of El Salvador. I wrote recently about how 48% of Brits know almost nothing about crypto.  This is the same for countries all around the world. But since I have just moved to London, let’s dig into the British for the time being.

Top Misconceptions

 Looking at a study by VoucherCodes.co.uk, they presented the below as some of the biggest misconceptions in the UK, which I have put together a chart for:

 

 I think the chart says it all.

While the top two are hugely understandable, the others show that there is still a massive chunk of the British population that just do not understand crypto. That is perfectly fine. In fact, it’s a good thing – it shows how much further the industry could grow.

But the first step to adoption is education. I actually think this is what they got wrong in El Salvador. Announcing Bitcoin as legal tender spontaneously – from a Bitcoin conference in Miami – without prior warning or discussion with the people is not the way to go.

The UK, of course, won’t be announcing Bitcoin as legal tender anytime soon (although with the way the pound has been going recently, don’t rule anything out!).

But the barriers are still here. And for the 2%: no, Elon Musk didn’t make cryptocurrency up. Unless they think he is Satoshi Nakamoto? I guess it can’t be ruled out.

Sources

VoucherCodes.co.uk

A TRADER has revealed he woke up to find he had lost nearly $500,000 on a cryptocurrency scam.

Brian Nyugen admitted he had become a victim after the developers of AnubisDAO – another dog themed cryptocurrency like Shiba Inu – allegedly made off with $60 million of investors’ cash.

2

The currency had only been launched last week in the ‘dog coin’ surge that saw Shiba Inu and Dogecoin soar in value.

It instantly attracted investors and raised $60 million but the funds were soon drained from the project’s liquidity pool in what’s known as a ‘rug pull’, Cryptoslate reports.

A liquidity pool are funds thrown together in a digital pile and are used to facilitate decentralised trading.

A rueful Nyugen said he failed to obey the basic principles of crypto investment in what was a “pretty painful experience”.

“We, in crypto, tend to have a ‘buy first, do research later,’ mentality,” he told CNBC.

AnubisDAO began selling its token on Thursday and ended on Friday, during which Nguyen says invested six figures worth of ether.

But on Friday he “unexpectedly woke up” to find his investment had disappeared.

He said the currency appealed to him because it marketed itself in a similar way to like Dogecoin and Shiba Inu.

AnubisDAO had support from a popular crypto influencer called 0xSisyphus, who he respects, and “so, I had some conviction on the buy”.

Hong Kong and US law enforcement are now investigating though the suspect developer claims to have fallen victim to a phishing attack.

AnubisDAO have been approached for comment.

Anubis is the Greek name for the Egyptian god of death and the underworld and the cryptocurrency was marketed with imagery depicting the god as donning the body of a human and the head of a dog.

0xSisyphus has published a detailed timeline outlining AnubisDAO’s formation and launch, FXStreet reports.

The cryptoinfluencer claims to have engaged with law enforcement in both the United States and Hong Kong.

“With a high degree of certainty I can say the Anubis rug probably was not a phishing attack,” said Sisyphus on Twitter.

He also revealed that access to the liquidity pool appears to have been in the hands of one person.

PRETTY PAINFUL

Cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and can be incredibly risky to invest in.

Unlike other types of investment, crypto is not regulated so you don’t have protection if things goes wrong.

Another major concern for any considering crypto is there’s no guarantee you’ll be able to convert your assets back to cash when you need to.

Fees and charges for buying and selling can also be much higher than with other investments.

A digital token inspired by the popular South Korean Netflix series Squid Game has lost almost all of its value as it was revealed to be an a rug pull

Squid marketed itself as a ‘play-to-earn cryptocurrency’ and had seen its price soar in recent days – surging by thousands of per cent.

Squid’s developers have made off with an estimated $3.38m according to technology website Gizmodo.

2