As government’s around the world scramble to figure out cryptocurrency, like us figuring out season 2 of Westworld, these seven cities are leading the charge to adopt crypto into their financial ecosystems:



(Nagel Photography)

Cheyenne – Wyoming is home to many pioneers, including creating the concept of a Limited Liability Company (“LLC”) and actual pioneers who, you know, trailblazed trails and well, you get the idea. Now, Wyoming wants to be the crypto capital of the U.S. They’re putting their cryptocurrency where their mouth is, starting by exempting crypto from state taxes. If successful, maybe this will be Wyoming’s second gold rush, with the picks and shovels replaced with Bitcoin miners and cries of, “We hit the mother lode!” replaced with, “We hit the mother node!”

Hong Kong – Hong Kong is emerging as a new hub for Initial Coin Offerings or ICO’s, hosting several successful ICOs such as AirSwap, which raised $36 million and Gatcoin, which raised $14.5 million. With China banning ICOs, companies have rushed to Hong Kong to issue their ICOs. At the time of this writing, they have no specific set of rules concerning ICOs, and so far Hong Kong officials have adopted a favorable view towards crypto and ICOs. Hong Kong’s Financial Services and Treasury (FTSB) also went on record saying that crypto is not a threat.

Singapore – Singapore is ranked as the world’s smartest city, according to Juniper Research, so cryptocurrency seems like a natural fit. It’s not the smartest city because Ken Jennings, the Jeopardy champ lives there, the rankings are based on a city’s use of the Internet of Things (Iot) in four key areas: healthcare, mobility, public safety, and productivity. One study showed that Singapore’s smart traffic systems reduced gridlock by up to 60 hours a year. (Source: Singapore Business Review)

Singapore was ranked number one in all four categories.

Nashville – When you think of Tennessee, you probably don’t think of technological innovation, unless you count bootlegging as an innovation, but Tennessee is throwing it’s hat in the ring as a leading place for crypto adoption. Governor Bill Haslam signed into law a bill that legally recognizes Blockchain and smart contract records. (Source: The Tennessean)

Smart contracts are digital contracts that are verified without the use of a third-party and are irreversible, similar to some of the choices you made the night before finals.

The bill’s passing is a giant leap forward toward legitimizing blockchain’s use in many facets such as legal records, real estate records, healthcare and collegiate records. Tennessee hopes the bill will attract new blockchain-based businesses to the state. Maybe someday the blockchain will help us keep a digital ledger of how many n’s, s’ and e’s are in Tennessee.

Phoenix – Arizona has two crypto bills on the floor, one that recognizes cryptocurrency as a currency as opposed to a commodity and the other monumental bill proposes to allow taxpayers to pay their taxes with cryptocurrency. This would set a precedent that would be hard to ignore and would be a major step forward in crypto adoption. It would also make a great Odd-Couple style movie, Fiat and Crypto as roommates starring Willem Dafoe as Fiat and Jack Black as Crypto.

Arizona State Rep. Jeff Weninger says on paying taxes with Bitcoin, “In a few years this isn’t going to be a question.” (Source: Coindesk.com)

Time will tell if other state governments will follow suit.

Amsterdam – The city of sin is becoming a major hub for crypto and blockchain startups. The city is also home to The Bitcoin Embassy, where crypto heads and novices alike meet to discuss all things Bitcoin and crypto. They offer weekly seminars, computers to purchase Bitcoins, meetup groups, and more. Amsterdam also hosts the Bitcoin film festival, which features films about Bitcoin and other leading digital currencies. We’ll be submitting a few films this year; Wallet Raider, The Fast and The Forking and DeadMiningPool.

Zug, Switzerland – While the city’s name sounds like a tech hub about as much as donuts sound like dieting, Zug has become known as “Crypto Valley.” Switzerland itself has long been considered pro-business and a tax-haven due to it’s low taxation on individuals and foreign corporations, so it’s no surprise that the tiny 30,000 person town of Zug has emerged as one of the friendliest crypto cities in the world. Zug is also home to the Ethereum foundation and the world’s 2nd largest city for ICO fund-raising.

What do you think your city needs to do to become crypto-friendly? Let us know on Twitter.