This Pro-Crypto Entrepreneur Claims Blockchain to Harness the Finance Investing and Asset Management An interview with STIPS|FinTech CEO Dmitrii Kotegov.

Many claim the blockchain industry is to follow the exact same path the internet took back in the 90s, because of how ground-shaking the innovation is. Is crypto really the next Internet?

I suppose so. Because cryptocurrencies are based on blockchain distributed registry technology. Now this technology is in its infancy and is only just finding its application on the part of crypto enthusiasts and some financial structures. In the future, blockchain technologies will be implemented in most accounting databases and will significantly increase transparency, as well as verification procedures for many kinds of operations. In essence, what is a blockchain? It is a form of storing records that is synchronized, validated and stored simultaneously by all the members of a network. This gives unlimited opportunities to account for any complex transactions, operations, transfers and so on. Imagine that a time will come when you can buy an apartment by sending an SMS from your phone. All the registration procedures will take place only through the use of your verified account. The blockchain can provide automatic transfers of documents to all the relevant registration authorities. It also allows sending funds from your account and many other procedures that require several weeks to be completed today.

The backroom government conversations complementing the unintelligible, yet loud and clear crypto-enthusiast statements, the community seems to be expecting institutionally backed crypto bull-run in 2019. Where do you think the market is now?

The cryptocurrency market is currently passing through a consolidation phase. Many small participants will not be able to survive the recession, and crypto assets are currently in the hands of weak players. But this is a natural process of ridding the market of unrelated individuals who are not determined to stay in it seriously and for a long time. In general, the market has lost more than 70% from its previous peak indicators. At first glance, this may be a scary phenomenon, but if you look at history, you will see that the market had four similar corrections. Bitcoin lost even more than 90% of its value as the main cryptocurrency! Growth will follow this corrective phase, it is only a matter of time. At the same time, a new round of growth will bring new participants to the market and they will need new tools for analyzing crypto assets, which will allow them to make the right investment decisions based on fundamental data. The STIPS | Oculus trading and analytical platform can act in the capacity of such an instrument, since it will allow one to separate the wheat from the chaff on the crypto market.

The market needs an impulse for growth and one of these impulses could be the arrival of new monetary liquidity, new participants who are still eyeing the market, but cannot take the first step due to the lack of clarity on the part of the regulators. I am not only talking about the approval of Bitcoin-ETFs, but also the development of clear rules for cryptocurrency companies.

How are you expecting the market to change in the next year?

We expect that next year the market will pleasantly surprise us with new milestones in its development, prominent projects and new names, and that it will become more civilized and safer. Whatever the cryptoanarchists and supporters of the decentralized market may say, investor protection is what market participants should be looking at. We expect the development of legislation and protective mechanisms for investors, a significant increase in requirements for projects, including their reporting and the quality of personnel training.

- While market is still maturing, the need for better, faster and safer assert management solutions accretes at an accelerated pace, the institutional wave demands full compliance with what they are accustomed to on Wall Street. How shall crypto change for this merging to be seamless?

Cryptocurrencies have already been recognized as a new class of assets that are starting to provide their customers with funds, investment banks, exchanges and management companies. Their adaptation will take place in conjunction with investor interest, and will certainly have a positive impact on the entire industry. Today, the CBOE and CME platforms, which are the largest of their kind on the market, already provide the ability to trade Bitcoin futures. This means that professional industry participants can hedge their positions on BTC. A lingering problem is the lack of liquidity on the part of cryptocurrency exchanges and the difficulty in acquiring these types of assets in most countries. The recent announcement by the operator of the NYSE Intercontinental Exchange about the launch of its own cryptocurrency platform, which will include exchanges, custodial services, applications for trade organizations and individual users, means that soon digital money will become an integral element of Wall Street along with shares, bonds and fiat currencies.

With exchange, trading, assert management and crypto analysis solutions multiplying infinitely in their eager to win the market, what shall the ideal mix of instruments represent to become the ultimate player?

You just mentioned my favorite topic! Today there are no transparent and reliable instruments on the market for the analysis of fundamental data on crypto assets. More than 2,000 cryptocurrencies have appeared over the period of this year. Which one of these should an investor choose? What can be done to earn money and not lose it? Which team can you trust? All these questions will be answered by our STIPS| FinTech team, which is working on creating a unique ecosystem that covers all market participants, all categories of investors, and is designed to solve a fundamental problem – simplifying information and making it accessible, and ensuring that investments become reliable and smart.