WILLEMSTAD – Peter Kroll has been calling Curaçao his home for more than 14 years now. He is active in the world of cryptocurrency, especially Bitcoin. In an exclusive interview with Curaçao Chronicle, Peter explains more about Bitcoin.
The people on the island are getting more acquainted with this crypto currency.
Kroll is known in the Bitcoin community for his invention of the Bitcoin Paper Wallet, a simple way to keep Bitcoin away from hackers. His open-source project is bitaddress.org.
Peter is the Director of BTC Curacao which is a think tank whose mission is to spread awareness and adoption of Bitcoin, a new global monetary standard, in Curacao.
One of the questions that always comes up is who controls the Bitcoin network?
Kroll says that no single person or company controls Bitcoin. It’s a system of rules with no rulers. One of the main rules is that there will never be more than 21 million Bitcoins. Bitcoin governance power is split between 1) the developers 2) the miners and 3) the users and exchanges.
The developers maintain the code to run efficiently and securely. Kroll says that anyone can be a developer. Developers can propose new rules that don’t break any old rules.
Anyone can be a miner and the miners decide if they show support of these new rules as part of the mining process. If the miners do not unanimously support the same rules, then the users and exchanges have the power to decide which rules they will follow. Most users will follow the rules that lead to the most valuable Bitcoin.
Who determines the value of Bitcoin?
To this question Kroll says that every individual contributes to the price of bitcoin by deciding at which price they are willing to buy or sell bitcoin. The demand for bitcoin determines its market price. Most wallet apps will display the bitcoin exchange rate to Florins (guilders) from a popular Bitcoin exchange.
One of the issues that always comes up is that Bitcoin is used by the underworld for transactions.
Kroll says that the US dollar is by far the most popular currency of the underworld. Bitcoin is traceable and when used in high profile crimes, judicial authorities have used the Bitcoin blockchain to track down and arrest major criminals.
But how popular is Bitcoin in Curaçao?
Kroll estimates that 1.5% of Curacao has some savings in Bitcoin based on their social media following. The business community of Curacao has shown a growing interest in Bitcoin and over the past year 60+ businesses already accept payments in Bitcoin. The list can be found on BTCCuracao.com.
You have several billboards on the island saying that a few years ago you could buy a slice of pizza with a bitcoin, now you can buy a car. But how does that work, meaning the payment.
Do you use a payment card?
Or do you have to trade your Bitcoins for money?
How difficult is to make a Bitcoin payment?
To these answers, Kroll says that it’s easy to make a direct Bitcoin payment. Most people use an app on their phone, such as Bluewallet. Users can spend Bitcoin directly at 60+ businesses on Curacao. If they want to buy a new car on Curacao today, they would have to sell their Bitcoin for cash money or bank deposits. They can use the Telegram group @btccuracao to buy and sell Bitcoin in Curacao. There are Visa/Mastercard available for Curacao residents that can be topped up with Bitcoin. “We maintain a list on our website of all the places in Curacao to buy, spend or sell Bitcoin,” says Kroll.
You have been on the island for a while now promoting Bitcoin. Do people here really use it or is it still seen as a savings method?
“We have been promoting BTCCuracao for over a year now. The idea is to create a platform by which the people of Curacao can feel confident to hold Bitcoin knowing that in the near future they can easily spend it locally if they wish. Our billboards are meant to express the benefit of saving your Bitcoin. The pizza vs car image explains that over time your purchasing power in Bitcoin will massively increase.”
Are there interests in Bitcoin?
There are some new regulated Bitcoin financial institutions outside of Curacao that accept Bitcoin deposits from Curacao residents and pay interest on them. They should expect 7% interest per year or less.
What are the advantages of owning Bitcoin?
Kroll says that anyone with a mobile phone can have a Bitcoin wallet and own Bitcoin. Therefore, Bitcoin as money will be held by more people than any other national currency.
“You can sell Bitcoin anywhere on the planet and at any moment of time because it is the best store of value. It solves the decades old problem of how to send money over the internet without a company in the middle of the transaction. With the fixed supply, Bitcoin is in the process of becoming a global reserve currency like gold and a standard for international cross border payments.”
Bron: Curacao Chronicle