UnikoinGold was launched as the largest gaming and esports token sale to date, with over 112,000 ETH collected, largely from individual customers in over 100 countries. Almost immediately, our community of users ran into an issue that plagues every altcoin on the market: access.

More people wanted UKG than could get it, and going through the hurdles of acquiring Bitcoin, finding an exchange, transferring the BTC to that exchange, trading for UKG, and then coming to Unikrn is just a broken experience on so many levels.

On top of this we hurried to get UKG onto as many legitimate exchanges as possible, but because there are so many questionable operations in crypto, we knew we had to do our research. During the fall of 2017, it became substantially more difficult to vet exchanges because of the unheard of amount of volume and scams in the space.

This leads me to conclude that the crypto market is in desperate need of three things to become mainstream;

Governments need to support innovation in the blockchain space while applying regulation that protects consumers. Banks need to embrace blockchain and make it easy to bank with crypto. Blockchain companies need tools to make it easier for their customers to use their platforms.

I’ve wanted to help change these broken aspects of the ecosystem for a long time now, and today we’re taking a huge step toward solving some of blockchain’s biggest challenges. We’re working to put cryptocurrency into the spotlight in a way never before seen while radically improving the user experience for companies like Unikrn.

Today, I am in Malta. I am here because it is one of the most forward-thinking countries in the world particularly when it comes to cryptocurrency and fintech. There’s a reason that Unikrn worked over a year to establish roots in Malta, and now companies like Binance, OKex, Bitbay, and a host of other companies in this field are shipping operations here.

Say Hi to Palladium

I’m joining the board of — and Unikrn is helping power — one of the most ambitious blockchain companies in the world. It’s called Palladium. You’re probably wondering if this is just another “historic” cryptocurrency project with no teeth (I’m sure you hear about those every day). I would say other projects are guppies, while this is a shark.

Palladium will become the first regulated unified platform for fiat banking and cryptocurrency exchange, meaning users will be able to make cryptocurrency payments for their bills, buy crypto from their checking account, or swap crypto assets without needing multiple wallets and accounts, all from a single platform. Palladium Exchange, powered by Bittrex, will be the first regulated exchange to allow both security and utility tokens to be transacted.

The project is regulated by a European directive prospectus which is already approved, the first ever, and nothing like this exists in the world.

Palladium will further make history by holding the world’s first-ever initial convertible coin offering (ICCO) which will give our investors an actual convertible warrant for actual partial ownership of the company, creating direct investor participation.

It’s designed to effect sweeping change in crypto and fintech by allowing users to buy, sell, trade, and save in any currency — crypto or fiat — within a fully legal and regulatory compliant framework.

In a new joint venture with Bittrex, Palladium and Bittrex are building a brand-new exchange — we are in the middle of acquiring our banking license while creating a network that will allow the two to interact and communicate within modern regulation.

There’s a reason Unikrn was tapped for this project: we created the idea alongside some veterans of insurance, finance and investment. This will help create liquidity in all legitimate crypto markets, from Bitcoin to UnikoinGold to small utility tokens created for niche markets with legitimate teams behind them.

Bittrex CEO Bill Shihara, who recently joined our board of advisors, is here in Malta with me, along with Kiran Raj, Bittrex Chief Strategy Officer, and Unikrn co-founder Karl Flores, Unikrn CTO Daniel Rudolph. We’re also joined by the incredible Palladium leadership team including their CEO Prof. Paolo Catalfamo. We are announcing Palladium today at the Malta Stock Exchange with the Prime Minister of Malta, Dr. Joseph Muscat, the Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services, Digital Economy and Innovation, Mr. Silvio Schembri, the CEO of the Malta Financial Services Authority, Mr. Joseph Cuschieri, and many more.

So What does this mean for Unikrn?

While this is a major move for the industry as a whole, I can understand why our customers and investors would ask what is the benefit to Unikrn.

Firstly, it means we’re working on solutions to enhance the blockchain ecosystem, which will be good for UnikoinGold users. That’s especially important to think about given that we’re rolling out crypto betting soon. We want to give our users the ability to swipe a credit card and buy UKG from our site, just make it easy. This is the kind of tech we will work to enable for every good operator in the space.

Secondly, Unikrn is a significant owner of this potentially world-changing venture. We created vital new technologies for the UKG sale, we have patent-pending crypto-related tech in our stables for UKG, and we plan to license some of that to Palladium.

Thirdly, it means we’re working side-by-side with leaders in crypto and blockchain, the Malta government, Bittrex, and others who are defining the world. We get this seat in history because we are defining the world, too, and our entire community is there with us.

Thank you for supporting us on our journey! Go Palladium and Go Unikrn!