Blockchain and cryptocurrency together can solve the omnipresent issue of unbankedness, which is troubling as many as two billion people around the world currently, says Lennix Lai, the Financial Markets Director at OKEx, a leading cryptocurrency exchange based in Malta.
While often an issue in the under-developed countries, unbankedness exists in certain pockets of developed nations as well. Last year, research revealed that the unbanked population around the world contribute a whopping three hundred and eighty billion US dollars ($380 billion) to the global economy. Thus, it is time the government and financial institutions take notice and do something about it.
Blockchain and cryptocurrency – Banking the unbanked
While addressing the 50th World Economic Forum at Davos today, Lai demonstrated how and why it is essential for the blockchain-empowered financial system to take its shape. Unbankedness – the term referred to people who do not have access to any form of banking or financial services, either due to high operational costs or lack of infrastructure, is one of the biggest shortcomings of the existing monetary system today, Lai pointed out.
At the same time, it also presents us with a number of opportunities to make a difference, he said. Unbankedness prohibits the underprivileged from making a decent living because they are unable to return to the banks with potential benefits. That’s an area blockchain and cryptocurrency can effectively address, he asserted.
Lai believes that by offering a digital, decentralized and transparent financial system, it can benefit both the banking system as well as the general population by dramatically lowering set up costs and reaching out to people who, otherwise, do not have access to financial entities. Blockchain can achieve completely sustainable development and financial inclusiveness for all, including banked and unbanked.
The world is ready for the big transition, OKEx
Being a world leader in the digital assets industry, offering a comprehensive range of cryptocurrency trading products and services, OKEx’s ultimate vision is financial inclusivity. Speaking about how OKEx works towards attaining this goal, Lai said that the firm has several global regulators backing it, which implies that it is closely working with them to provide a fully compliant, safe and regulated trading platform.
Lastly, while explaining whether or not the world is finally coming to terms with blockchain and cryptocurrency, the two very innovative technologies somewhat striving against bias, Lai affirmed that we are getting there, slowly but surely.
When Bitcoin volatility is low, it does come off as an attractive alternative to other investment options and safe-haven assets. Moreover, the emergence of DeFi suggests that people are ready to gradually make a transition to the decentralized, free and permissionless financial system. Our recently launched options, together with futures and spot markets, have experienced a massive surge in demand as it essentially enables users to control the crypto price fluctuations. So, it is really about handing the control back to the users, Lai concludes.
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