Liberland Coin: A Decentralized Country Experiment

Liberland Coin is the cryptocurrency of Liberland. This is a one of a kind country with a legal and economic system entirely built on blockchain technology.

Cryptocurrency emerged both as an invention and an idea. The invention was in the form of the trustless decentralized ledger called the blockchain. This is impressive but the rallying cry was themed on what cryptocurrency meant.

The idea of liberty, freedom from centralized government control and individual autonomy really spurred the early Bitcoin community. After all, the financial crisis of 2008 exposed the vulnerabilities of central banking. A lot of people indefinitely lost faith in the financial system as constituted.

Libertarianism is the ideology that the government should have minimal interference in the lives of individuals. Indeed, Libertarians have been a big contingent of the entire cryptocurrency community.

Cryptocurrency could provide solutions in two ways; either changing the financial system from within in a gradual takeover or starting all over from scratch. It goes without saying that both solutions are difficult because of slow adoption and government skepticism all over the world. The latter in particular is a radical idea and difficult because it represents an affront to the very idea of sovereignty.

Micronations and Cryptocurrency

Inspired by the virtual nature of cryptocurrency, certain individuals came up with the idea of creating new nations entirely based on cryptocurrency. Some like Bitnation promised a “decentralized borderless voluntary nation”. This meant that this nation existed without needing a geographical location.

However, other Micronations took a bolder approach. This is where the Liberland project came in. Liberland, according to its President Vit Jedlicka, is an independent country with a legal and economic system entirely built on the blockchain.

Vit was an economist-politician for many years in the Czech Republic. With the advent of cryptocurrency, he decided to form an independent country on a disputed 7 Km2 strip between Croatia and Serbia.

“For many years, I worked for lowering taxes and regulations in the Czech Republic, but I suddenly realized that it would be easier to start a new country than to fix an existing one.”-Vit Jedlicka

Naturally, the neighboring countries did not take this lying down. Croatia, in particular, was the most reactive arresting more than 100 people who tried to enter the territory in the past three years. As a matter of fact, Mr. Jedlicka himself was detained briefly and fined in 2015.

How does Liberland and Liberland Coin Operate?

The motto of this country is ‘Live and let live’. Accordingly, the emphasis is clearly on direct democracy and minimal centralized control. The country will rely exclusively on blockchain technology and has received tens of thousands of dollars in the form of Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash.

This country is to have a cryptocurrency called Merits as the standard crypto. However, at the moment there are no restrictions on the kinds of cryptocurrency citizens utilize. The Merits coin is still in the development phase or already exists but little information is available to that effect. People can pay taxes and receive merits in exchange for a stake in the country.

This country has the incentive of low taxes and no restrictions as to citizenship. In the event that this idea works, Liberland will be a dynamic marketplace for digital assets much like a Hong Kong or Singapore in the financial world.

The biggest challenge at the moment is getting to the territory since Croatia takes a hostile stance. The president has been traveling around the world promoting the country. A reported half a million people have already applied for a Liberland citizenship..

At the moment country business is conducted via Skype, WhatsApp, and Gmail. This way, the approximately 100 representatives around the world stay in touch.

Conclusion

Liberland Coin is a project like few others before it. If successful, it will offer the world a glimpse of how a fully blockchain dependent country and operates. That said, given the political implications of the project, progress will be slow and labored. All cryptocurrency enthusiasts should keep tabs with this project because its success will have interesting ramifications. Let us hope for the best for Liberland Coin.