Does Crypto Always Mean Decentralization?

Cryptocurrencies are based on decentralized technologies, but there is a big difference in terms of what they are, how they are used, and what it means for the projects - and now, governments - that are engaging in these technologies.

DecentralizationIf you look at cryptocurrency, it is a digital currency or asset that operates on the back of a decentralized technology called blockchain that is capable of being integrated into many different platforms in many different ways.

It's as much a philosophy as it is a form of technology or an approach to technology development.

Now seems like a good time to start putting some clarification around these elements for the new wave that will be adopting products and services based on these technologies, and promoting a dialogue around the difference between the recent decentralized movement we have seen, and the engagement in cryptocurrencies we are now starting to see with major platforms such as Line and Facebook.

The decentralized movement around consumer software in particular has largely been oriented around putting users back in the driver's seat regarding their data, privacy, communications and financial transactions, looking to usher in a web 3.0 that increases the benefit to users of technology as opposed to focusing value primarily to the service providers.

As these technologies and more like them came to market, a number of factors ranging from scalability, bandwidth, hardware capability, user requirements, legal issues, vested interests and more pushed toward increased adoption of the centralized model we now refer to as "The cloud."

With misinformation now at the point of weaponization, when we are talking about the emergence of a turning point in the global financial system and targeting hundreds of millions of unbanked people around the world, it's no less than significant to ensure that users adopting these technologies are aware of what they are voting for and buying into.

From the perspective of delivering a solution to a market serving a couple of billion people, there is definitely truth to what the Libra whitepaper is saying, in that blockchain technology isn't quite ready yet.

The community as a whole is going to benefit from this, we just need to make sure that there is a known distinction between the projects, the technology and what they are being used for, so that as the mainstream weighs in, they know what they are supporting.

We need to ensure that we don't fall into the position where we get halfway to decentralization before fundamental compromises are made, still considering it a done job while major players that don't necessarily align with the philosophy of decentralization end up being the ones who are championed to the mainstream as the pioneers for this technology, what it can do, and what it represents as we move into the era of web 3.0.