So Facebook have rebranded as Meta and the buzz is growing about the MetaVerse. Despite all the memes and the criticism of FB/Meta, the key takeway is that this whole Internet 3.0 and the world of Crypto is simply now ‘too big to fail”. Like a fair few people, I have a modest exposure to Bitcoin as a tail risk event through the GreyScale Bitcoin Trust, which acts like an ETF exposed to Bitcoin, and just recently we now have bitcoin futures contracts which will help to further bring Crypto to the attention of (and make it accessible to) institutions and the wider public.

However, as the next step on the journey into Internet 3.0 and the MetaVerse and, since in my opinion you can’t begin to understand this world until you actually do it for real, I realised that I needed to download a digital Wallet in order to store my (to be acquired) digital assets. Fortunately, I was attending the Hong Kong Fintech week, where I spoke with a smart Aussie called Alex Oxford, who pointed out how dramatically the event had swung towards Blockchain and Crypto and directed me to talk with the man who, literally, wrote a book on Blockchain in HK, Charles d’Haussey of Conversys (the link goes to a fascinating interview). Charles was a prime mover in pushing Hong Kong into a leading position in Blockchain while working for InvestHK and is now at Conversys, blockchain architects, who amongst other things are responsible for MetaMask, regarded as one of the best and safest digital wallets around. And we also like the nod to the concept that while a Hedgehog knows one big thing, a Fox knows many things.

Here is your new Wallet. MetaMask

So with the help of my digital sherpa (everyone needs a smart young HKU graduate in these times) I downloaded my new wallet, ready to upload some digital assets. But first I need to exchange some ‘old money’. In fact, I already had some digital currency; in an interesting pre-cursor to the upcoming idea of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs), the government of Hong Kong have issued all HK citizens with Permanent Residency with a Consumption Voucher worth up to HK$5000, available in three tranches and added automatically to existing digital banking systems, although mostly on the Octopus card, which is essentially a prepaid digital debit card. You upload it with cash and then spend it on transportation, but also in shops and restaurants. Here the government basically uploaded digital cash for you. The top up tranches are dependent on the ‘money’ being actually spent. With what I thought was some nice symmetry, I found somewhere who was willing to exchange my HK consumption voucher for some crypto and thus as a result, and after further consideration (and talking to my Sherpa), I have Invested rather than consumed my voucher into some ‘coins’.

Here is a snapshot of my new Wallet (in US$)

For a little background and explanation, although please note, this is not Crypto Trading advice!

We started with the biggest Coins, Bitcoin and Ethereum, but then added in some of the guys ‘selling the picks and shovels’ for this particular Gold Rush. For it certainly feels very much like a Gold Rush and while the energy around HK Finance Week may have been arguably misplaced in some cases, it was nevertheless palpable and, as noted earlier, what is clear that this whole eco-system, while in the midst of rapid change, is now too big to fail.

Our idea then is to watch it from the inside as well as the outside.

1. Bitcoin (BTC)

“online payments to be sent directly from one party to another without going through a financial institution.”

Wrapped BTC (WBTC)  is the tokenized version of Bitcoin (BTC) that runs on the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain. It is also backed by Bitcoin at a 1:1 ratio via a network of automatically monitored merchants and custodians, ensuring that its price is pegged to Bitcoin at all times and allows users to transfer liquidity between the BTC and the ETH networks in a decentralized and autonomous manner.

2. Ethereum (ETH)

Ethereum is a decentralized open-source blockchain system that features its own cryptocurrency, Ether. ETH works as a platform for numerous other cryptocurrencies, as well as for the execution of decentralized smart contracts.

3. Binance Coin (BNB)

Launched in July 2017, Binance is the biggest cryptocurrency exchange globally based on daily trading volume. Apart from being the most successful exchange, Binance has launched a whole ecosystem of functionalities for its users, e.g. Binance Chain, Binance Smart Chain, Binance Academy, Trust Wallet. Binance Coin is an integral part of the successful functioning of many of the Binance sub-projects.

4. Uniswap (UNI)

Uniswap is a popular decentralized trading protocol, known for its role in facilitating automated trading of decentralized finance (DeFi) tokens.

5. Chainlink (LINK)

Chainlink is a blockchain abstraction layer that enables universally connected smart contracts. Through a decentralized oracle network, Chainlink allows blockchains to securely interact with external data feeds, events and payment methods, providing the critical off-chain information needed by complex smart contracts to become the dominant form of digital agreement.

Off we go….

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