A net positive for the entire crypto industry

The major yearly blockchain event, Paris Blockchain Week, brought together some of the biggest names in the blockchain and crypto industry in 2023. The three-day event starting on March 21 turned out to be a net positive for the crypto industry as prominent industry players came together to discuss and share their thoughts on the past, present and future of the decentralized ecosystem.

The Cointelegraph team was present on the ground to bring readers some of the behind-the-scenes, exclusive interviews, insightful video bites from industry experts and more. Cointelegraph editor-in-chief Kristina Lucrezia Cornèr, head of video Jackson DuMont and reporter Joseph Hall were tasked with the duty to bring readers a bird’s eye view of the event.

Father of the metaverse reflect on the industry today

Even before the main event kicked off on March 21st, the Cointelegraph team got in touch with Neal Stephenson, an American author who coined the term metaverse in the 1990s. Cointelegraph editor-in-chief sat down with Stephenson to reflect on the meaning of the word in today’s world.

Stephenson said that the meaning of the word has definitely changed in today’s terms. While reflecting on the failure of the metaverse to see mass adoption and very few takers in the bear market, he said that people and companies are skipping the important steps of building an economy first.

The first day of the event kicked off on March 21 and turned out to be quite an eventful one. The opening keynote speech by Ethereum co-founder Joseph Lubin reflected on the growing demand for Web3-based payment infrastructure and the need for a decentralized solution in the traditional financial ecosystem.

Industry experts discuss the potential impact of MiCA

Among numerous expert panels throughout the day, the one that caught everyone’s attention was a discussion on the implications and potential impacts of the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA).

Experts on the panel unanimously agreed that the upcoming regulations would be an overall help for the EU crypto industry. It would set a certain standard that could be potentially used by other nations in the future. Janet Ho, head of EU policy at Chainalysis stressed the need for a review of the implementation and obligations of the law, and consider feedback from government supervisors and industry participants.

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