Apple’s co-founder Steve Wozniak has always been fan of cryptocurrencies but struggled with the broader blockchain trend, claiming it was just a bubble. But now there are signs that he’s had a change of heart after gaining a better understanding of everything blockchain.
So, the question is this: If super genius Steve Wozniak didn’t fully get blockchain at first, what are the rest of not getting? It was only two months ago that Wozniak was pushing his skepticism over blockchain hype, as skepticism that has quickly vanished.
Talking about his earlier belief that blockchain was nothing more than a fad, Wozniak told Nulltx.com this week: “At first I kept hearing [about blockchain], and I didn’t understand it. It’s not something you understand in a day. You think about it, read more about it and how it works, and then you see how people actually start to use it, through the mining process and also the verification and, aha! It all adds up!” said Wozniak, before reflecting on early conceptions of crypto.
In that same exclusive interview, Wozniak revealed his plans for the first time to get involved with a blockchain company called “Equi Capital”.
It’s not “phony”, he said; rather it’s a share of stock in a real company, rather than a new currency. The company, Wozniak said, “is doing investment by investors with huge track records in good investments in things like apartment buildings in Dubai.”
He also hinted that the company might be launching in Malta, and mention one investor who has actually “listed out” an apartment building for bitcoin, which he still considers “digital gold”. Related: Stock Market Opens Flat But Bullish Signs Remain
So should we be running toward blockchain now that this tech prodigy has changed his mind?
Well, let’s take a look at what we know about Equi so far, even if it’s not much to go on (but then again, in the crypto world, there’s never enough to go on). Equi calls itself “The Ultimate Disruptor to Traditional Venture Capital Investing”.
But Equi Capital’s Ethereum ICO was a bit of a controversial flop, and the company is a highly colorful outfit that one would—without a stretch—link to someone like Wozniak. For starters, the company was founded by Baroness Michelle Mone (Lady Mone)—a Scottish lingerie billionaire--and Doug Barrowman, her boyfriend.
Now, the ICO has ended, and it’s been anything but smooth. The ICO launched on March 1st and was to last for six weeks and hoped to raise $75 million. When it only made less than 10 percent of that four weeks into it, it moved to extend for another six weeks. It then had a major tiff with the marketing company it hired, leading to their exit as partners.
Trying to recover what was supposed to be an easy success, Equi launched a bounty campaign using bounty hunters compensated for advertising, pledging to give all participants 2 percent of all tokens, or 2 percent of the total value of $2.5 million. The ICO ended on June 30th, without meeting its target and refunded investors in July. Things got worse after that because the bounty hunters ended up getting a fraction of what they said they were promised in the deal.
Many will be glad to hear that Wozniak is beyond his bubble theory on blockchain, but just as many will be questioning his first choice of entry into this new world.
By Michael Kern for Safehaven.com
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