In the run up to his appearance at the Virtual Crypto Summit, Cointelegraph spoke to Roger Ver who said 2015 will be the year Bitcoin integrates with the traditional finance system, the Winklevoss Bitcoin ETF probably won’t be the first and more.

“I’m most excited about seeing Bitcoin integrate into the traditional financial system.”

Speaking to Cointelegraph ahead of his headlining lecture slot at the 2015 International Virtual Crypto Summit, on the theme of 'Bitcoin freeing the world', angel investor Roger Ver suggests he will be addressing the ways in which digital currencies may be able to negate national boundaries, making these territorial divisions less and less relevant.

Ver himself has recently suffered from some of the problems caused by international borders having failed to secure the US visa he required to attend the 2015 North American Bitcoin Conference in Miami.

Thankfully for the Bitcoin advocate, the upcoming Virtual Crypto Summit is just that, virtual. The free event seeks to bring to together crypto enthusiasts, start-ups, and experts from around the world in an online conference system based on a mass multiplayer online role playing game platform.

Ver will be steering his virtual avatar around the lecture halls, company booths, and start-up pitches, alongside several other big names from the digital currency world. Also speaking at the summit will be Sam Onat Yilmaz of Decentralized Applications Fund, and Toni Lane Casserly, the CEO of Cointelegraph.

The summit is based on a general theme of “From Speculation to (almost) Mainstream – a Summary of the Bitcoin Block Chain 6 Year Journey”, and will run on February 26 and 27. During the two day, the virtual event will feature lectures as well as presentations and pitches from crypto start-ups and will wrap up with a birthday party for the blockchain itself as it turns six years old.

“I suspect someone else will beat the Winklevoss to the punch.”

Interview with Roger Ver

Cointelegraph spoke to Ver and asked him how he saw 2015 developing for Bitcoin, and his plans for the Virtual Crypto Summit conference.

Cointelegraph: Following Coinbase’s US$75 million investment and with already a quarter of 2014’s total VC investment matched in 2015, do you think we will see this trend continue?

Roger Ver: I think in 2015 we will see more VC money invested in Bitcoin start-ups than all of Bitcoin’s previous history combined.

CT: What are you most excited about for 2015 and where will we see the most growth, development and investment opportunities? Bitcoin 2.0 projects? Something else?

RV: I’m most excited about seeing Bitcoin integrate into the traditional financial system. I think the infrastructure for Bitcoin 1.0 still needs to be developed before we start worrying about the 2.0 projects.

CT: What do you expect in terms of regulations for 2015? Have we reached a point when we’re going to start seeing governments and big business start paying closer attention?

RV: It is pretty clear that governments and big businesses have started paying attention. I think different jurisdictions will have different reactions.

CT: What is your opinion on much talked about Winklevoss Bitcoin ETF? Will it help or hurt Bitcoin?

RV: The more ways people can get involved with Bitcoin, the better, but I suspect someone else will beat the Winklevoss to the punch.

CT: Why do you think your visa was rejected (3 times?) by the US authorities, which prevented your from attending the TNABC Miami conference?

RV: It seems clear that they are just being petty tyrants. They claimed I was being denied because I hadn’t provided evidence of ties outside of the USA that would motivate me to leave after my visit, while at the same time, they were physically refusing to even look at the evidence I had brought with me. It was reminiscent of an elementary school student closing their eyes and refusing to see the truth.

CT: What will you focus on at the International Virtual Crypto Summit, to be held February 26?

RV: I will likely focus on the ways in which Bitcoin is making national boundaries less and less relevant.

CT: You have a lot of experience attending various conferences across the globe. What do you think of virtual conferences or even consumer-oriented events by comparison?

RV: Even with all of the technology we have today, attending in person is a lot more fun.

The 2015 International Virtual Crypto Summit will be running February 26 - 27 and regular tickets are free for everyone. Cointelegraph is proud to be the General Media Partner of the event and is proud to offer discounted rates for companies and individuals interested in taking a booth at the global summit. To take advantage of this exclusive offer, get in touch with our team at sales@cointelegraph to discuss your discounted rate.

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