‘This was fraud:’ Central Florida cryptocurrency companies react to Sam Bankman-Fried arrest

ORLANDO, Fla. – The as soon as “King of Crypto”, Samuel Bankman-Fried is going through eight prison expenses, after federal authorities say the disgraced cryptocurrency investor defrauded $1.8 billion from buyers.

Bankman-Fried’s arrest sends the message that Securities and Exchange Commission regulators is not going to tolerate fraud, even in a brand new, rising asset class like cryptocurrency.

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“We already have laws in the books to protect against fraud. At the end of the day, this was fraud,” mentioned Perianne Boring, an Orlando resident who has spent almost a decade on Capitol Hill advocating on behalf of digital property like bitcoin.

“Regulators should prosecute. [They should] prosecute aggressively against those who break the law, but to be clear, this was fraud, and that can happen in any industry,” mentioned Boring.

Boring’s commerce affiliation, the Chamber of Digital Commerce, focuses on educating lawmakers about digital property, and for years Boring has requested for regulatory readability within the cryptocurrency area.

“Because the U.S. has completely failed in offering clarity to businesses, activities moved overseas. That gave rise to FTX,” mentioned Boring. “Had the U.S. created a legal environment that encourages digital asset companies to operate here in the United States, we absolutely could have mitigated the amount of investor losses at FTX.”

So is crypto a protected funding? Orlando resident Brian Estes, who based the extremely profitable crypto-focused hedge fund Off the Chain Capital, believes not all crypto is created equal.

“A lot of crypto is not a safe investment. There are a lot of scams out there. There are a lot of tokens that are not based on any economics. But if you’re asking if Bitcoin is a safe investment, I believe bitcoin is going to be the monetary layer of the world over the next 1,000 years.”

Estes made millions investing early in megatrends, issues just like the web and good telephone know-how. He believes blockchain know-how, the tech that powers cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, is the subsequent megatrend.

“When we built the internet 30 years ago, we built it incorrectly. There was not any software that allowed us to transfer value through the internet, so we built the internet on top of the banking and credit card system,” mentioned Estes.

“That’s what blockchain technology fixes. That is why it is a megatrend. It is the next version of the internet.”

The Biden Administration estimates over 40 million Americans spend money on cryptocurrency. If you already personal crypto or need to start investing, Estes, who spent a long time as a standard finance wealth supervisor, says don’t strive to time the market. Instead, strive greenback value averaging.

“With dollar cost averaging you invest a little bit every day or every week or every month, consistently over time. That is what my daughter does.”

Want to be taught extra about bitcoin and blockchain know-how? Both Boring and Estes advocate Hope.com, a web site run by bitcoin investor Michael Saylor.

Check out Saylor’s site here.