Month: July 2020

Categories
Real-World Crypto

The UNICEF cryptofund

Two Indian startups were recently funded by UNICEF’s cryptofund. I had never heard of the cryptofund before, so I looked it up.

In October 2019 UNICEF, the UN agency for “humanitarian and developmental aid to children worldwide”, launched a fund that would both receive and hold contributions in cryptocurrency – ethereum and bitcoin – and use it to fund “open source technology benefiting children and young people around the world”. It’s not clear how large the initial fund is, but its parent – the “Innovation Fund” is USD 25million.

I’m somewhat confused why the fund lends money in cryptocurrency, given that its mandate isn’t limited to companies in the distributed ledger space, and even if it was, the investee companies will probably need fiat for practical everyday use. The two Indian startups that have received cryptocurrency are probably going to find it hard to convert it into fiat given that Indian banks are extremely averse to dealing with cryptocurrency because of the government’s will-they-won’t-they stand on the subject. It’s unclear how the fund is addressing this.

Then there’s the fact that cryptocurrencies are volatile, making the fund itself also so. This article which makes the case against this use of cryptocurrency in the development sector, describes the volatility of bitcoin in 2019 when the fund was announced:

On March 31, a single Bitcoin was worth $4,000.
On June 10, Bitcoin was at approximately $8,000 per coin
By July 8, it had jumped to almost $12,500 per coin
By October 11 it was back to about $8,500 per coin.

It’s not clear if the fund converts the bitcoin and ethereum it receives into stablecoins. If it does, it really should be something it makes clear.

Finally, there is the issue of receiving donations. This quote from the head of the parent UNICEF Innovation Fund is puzzling:

“The sheer volume of the funding that we move means that any gains in efficiency, any increases in transparency, could have quite a significant impact on how we operate as an organization,”

I fail to see how cryptocurrency donations contribute to an increase in transparency. Or, as we have seen above, in efficiency.

Overall it seems to be an attempt by a fund/department whose mandate is innovation to be seen as involved with innovations in technology and finance. As the UNICEF head said announcing the fund,

“If digital economies and currencies have the potential to shape the lives of coming generations, it is important that we explore the opportunities they offer.”

If there’s something pretty major I’m missing, please do let me know. I want to be proven wrong on this one.

Categories
Audience as Capital Discovery and Curation

Anker and value-signalling

I ordered a USB-C to USB-A braided cable, and it arrived today. I picked Anker despite it costing a little more than twice as much as the equivalent AmazonBasics cable because it – Anker – has a reputation for good quality products.

I wasn’t prepared for just how good.

The cable comes in a small suede pouch that not only has a velro loop to keep the cable in place but also a tiny magnet stitched within to keep the pouch shut:

The packaging itself makes multiple references to customer support, encouraging you to get in touch with them if you have a problem. The tiny card has ‘Happy?’ and ‘Not Happy’ halves.

The pouch has made sure that this cable is always going to be the one I toss into my bag among other USB-C ➝ USB A cables. And when it comes to buying future cables, there’s a good chance I’m going to spring for the one that encourages me and makes it easy to contact it there’s ever a problem.

More broadly, the whole package is a powerful example of signalling of value. It’s a commodity market – we’re talking cables here. But the message I receive loud and clear is that this is a company that cares about quality and stands behind it, that anything I buy from it will be long-lasting and won’t harm my devices.

The cable costs Anker more to make than the other cheaper cables do. And by adding just a little extra to those costs through the pouch and the paper card, the company’s able to set itself far apart from the alternatives, potentially charging a much higher markup than its competitors while also building loyalty.

After all, it’s a cable today; it’ll be other higher-priced products tomorrow.

Categories
Discovery and Curation Wellness when Always-On

Solitude

In the book Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World, the author writes about solitiude

“Solitude is about what’s happening in your brain, not the environment around you… a subjective state in which your mind is free from input from other minds.”

It means not simply being alone, but being alone with your thoughts. So watching TV or Netflix, reading a book or articles, listening to music or a podcast, even if alone, do not count as solitude – your mind is still receiving, as the author says, “input from other minds”.

It’s when one makes this distinction that one typically realises that such moments of solitude are rare, if they occur at all during a day. But this is also when one’s brain actively processes all the information it has consumed or been exposed to during the day – sleep being the only other time, and one is not really conscious then.

Typical of the work-hard-play-hard culture that’s become the norm, our antidote to total absorption in work or socialising has become meditation. While not at all a bad thing, it is as extreme a disconnection from work & play as our work & play itself has become. The big ocean between them is simply spending time not actively doing stuff – whether it is simply sitting or going on a walk. As part of the 30-day Reddit-Twitter isolation I’m going to resist the temptation to simply fill the time with more books, and try to spend some time by myself.