It was only last summer that our plan for UnikoinGold was presented to the public, a plan in which Unikrn aimed to be the world’s first betting company with a wagering license for both cryptocurrency and fiat in a gold-star jurisdiction.
The finance industry is conservative, making emerging technologies such as crypto a tough sell. We knew we needed great people to build new applications in commerce, gaming and regulated wagering, and we would need time to communicate those advantages to regulators.
Even back then, we were already transitioning to a blockchain-based platform, which gives us greater speed, flexibility, automation, transparency, and security. That meant we were deep into the technology, thinking about about every factor involved in our heavily-regulated industry and managing the strict auditing and reporting rules involved.
Unikrn Jet is the most advanced wagering backend on earth. It solves a bunch of problems in both blockchain and wagering. With it, we’ve knocked our blockchain transaction time from the typical (30 seconds to 30 minutes) to a blistering 9000 transactions per second.
Jet allows us to run multiple currencies in multiple jurisdictions with multiple tax rules, and can push offers automatically with a tracking system that will assist regulators with rapid answers. This should make it easier than ever to protect consumers.
This is an example of how blockchain can bring rapid evolution to established industries. Unikrn Jet supports regulation, anti-money laundering, know-your-customer, consumer protection and responsible gambling policies as was never possible before.
We see this as a public good, and I think it can help reduce skepticism or stigma sometimes associated with wagering as a fun, responsible form of entertainment. Unikrn has spent 4 years building our brand, community and technology. We have multiple patents and patents pending, partnerships, the most advanced platform in the market, and now we’re ready to scale.
Unikrn Jet alone would put us light years ahead of any other wagering business, and we’re open to allowing other operators to use Jet for their business.
But this development was also preparation for our broader ambitions. When the regulator asks tough questions, we always have the answers. A good regulator is able to protect consumers without stifling innovation, which can be a difficult line to walk as technology is shaping the world at whiplash speeds.
Without forward-thinking, anticipation and judgment, regulators stop protecting consumers and start burdening creators. Good regulators are able to spot and allow emerging applications for new technologies, especially in traditionally-established industries.
Without proper regulation, crypto will stagnate where we are today, wherein speculation without use cases creates enormous volatility.
The days of the random ICO are over, and that’s a damn good thing. In the last year there were over 2000 tokens, and nearly all of them will evaporate. Under the flood, potentially revolutionary projects are getting crushed by the pressure of crypto instability and a culture of irresponsible speculation.
That’s not a good picture. That’s not good for consumers, speculators, it’s not good for crypto’s image or industries that could be revolutionized by the technology. Nobody benefits from it except a handful of people who bought low and sold high — or those who created crappy ICOs — and all the naysayers who love to say “I told you so” — they don’t know what they’re talking about.
With time, commitment and an adequate regulatory framework, we can drain that swamp and build the foundations of a new daily life for consumers, users and fintech.
Unikrn is an example of how blockchain is improving how business can be done. All of our tools, KYC and AML, wallet tracking, responsible gambling systems, and reporting is, in essence, automated. I can see why many people are saying that fiat currency and traditional banking will be obsolete in the future, but the next step for blockchain is in applications for consumer markets.
A few groups, especially Unikrn, are supporting that future, but there’s still work to do.
Although we solved transaction time, ease of access is one of the biggest hurdles for any real crypto company. We want our customers to swipe a credit card and get their tokens, instead of jumping through multiple hoops and middlemen with increasingly difficult layers of complication.
Unikrn is working with Bittrex to make this happen, and we’re close. Long-term, we’re also working with Palladium (which is expected to become the world’s first unified banking and crypto platform and one of the first security token exchanges) to improve accessibility for any company and any platform worth supporting.
This is my life. This is the life of most of Unikrn’s over 90 employees, contractors and contributors. This is like building a cutting-edge plane while we’re already in the air: as of now, we have the engine, the wings, the passengers, the cockpit, just about everything.
Unikrn still expects to be the first operator get the type of license that allows to to accept bets with both crypto and fiat. We’re working closely with one of the world’s leading, most innovation-friendly regulators to make it happen. Stay tuned, we’re close — and it won’t just be a random announcement of a license, it’ll be the operational platform available in multiple jurisdictions.