“Don’t ask what blockchain can do for your company, ask what role your company will play in this community.” Stephan Karpischek, Etherisc.

Stephan Karpischek, Etherisc; Photo by Bojan Stepančič

“The best time for your company to go into the blockchain was two, three years ago. The second best time is now,” Stephan Karpischek, CEO of blockchain company Etherisc, stressed to more than 200 people that attended the first “fintech meets blockchain” conference in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Etherisc is an upcoming Cofound.it project.

More than 200 people attended the conference. Photo by Bojan Stepančič

The conference, titled “How the blockchain will change the financial industry”, was visited by CEOs of major financial institutions, representatives from regulators and old-school digital entrepreneurs. Cofound.it was a sponsor of the conference with many keynote speakers coming from the company.

From Potemkin’s village to social and economic revolution

The core of the blockchain revolution is the technology, Lan Filipič from Cofound.it, stated in his speech. He explained how the digital revolution of the past decades was really a Potemkin’s village. “Most of the development has been done on the side of the user interface, frontend. But in the background, nothing revolutionary happened. Blockchain is changing that,” emphasized Filipič.

Lan Filipič, Cofound.it; Photo by Bojan Stepančič

“It will take not more than two years for crypto companies to become big business,” stressed Maksim Balashevich, CEO of the crypto company Santiment. Balashevich also wanted to explain to the crowd that blockchain is more than just a new technology. “Blockchain is bringing challenges to the wider society and economy, that no one has encountered before,” Balashevich weighted on the crypto revolution. Santiment was the first Cofound.it project.

Maksim Balashevich, Santiment. Photo by Bojan Stepančič

How to regulate the crypto world

Government regulators all over the world are trying to leave its footprint in the crypto world. And Slovenia is no exception. Representatives from Central bank of Slovenia and Securities Market Agency shared their thoughts on regulation at the conferences. “Crypto world is a wild west. There is no protection for the people that contribute to crowdsales, and literally, anyone can raise support for their idea,” stressed Primož Damjanovič from Securities Market Agency. He stated that the agency has a special team of experts working on the problem. “We are working hand in hand with every Slovenian crowdsale project that comes to us for advice. We learn from them, and they learn from us,” added Damjanovič.

Primož Damjanovič, Securities Market Agency. Photo by Bojan Stepančič

Anja Rijavec Uršej from Central bank of Slovenia stated that in the EU regulation would have to be passed in Brussels. But that might be tricky. “Blockchain world is changing extremely fast, and Brussels usually needs five years to prepare legislation. Therefore we will see what will happen at the end,” stated Rijavec Uršej.

Anja Rijavec Uršej, Central bank of Slovenia. Photo by Bojan Stepančič

Blockchain and Slovenia, how to protect one’s crypto assets

There were many other topics discussed at the conference, from protecting one’s crypto assets to the disruption that blockchain is bringing into the banking and insurance business. One of the added values of the conference was informal networking at coffee breaks, where old business was trying to get information and opinion about their upcoming crowdsales.

Photo by Bojan Stepančič

Yes, Slovenia is bursting with enthusiasm for the crypto world, and everyone is preparing a crowdsale today. Even big banks and insurance companies.