Justin Sun's Coindesk interview review: HT is catching up with BNB

Tron founder Justin Sun discusses the significance of Hong Kong-based About Capital’s acquisition of cryptocurrency exchange Huobi Global. Plus, dive into decentralized stablecoin USDD, the “advantages” of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), how Binance stacks up against its competitors, and his “highly bullish” outlook for the crypto space.

Acquisition of Huobi

Coindesk: There are media reports that you are the main investor behind the acquisition of Huobi, and you received help from SBF. We know you have denied this news, but we would like to hear your more specific explanation.

Sun: Sam and I both think this is not an investment or acquisition or anything like that, and SBF and I have denied the news on various social media such as Twitter. But for me, I enjoy joining Huobi's Global Advisory Board, and I hope to attract more and more people to join us in the future.

Coindesk: So why didn’t you do it? I believe you have the ability to acquire Huobi. What was the reason that prevented you from making this choice?

Sun: I think there are many reasons. First, I think we need to do a thorough investigation of Huobi. Second, and most importantly, we need to make a correct assessment of the value of this transaction.

Maybe I will have a chance to do this in the future, but the time is not right now.

Huobi Development Strategy

Coindesk: Previously, we knew Huobi as a very successful Chinese exchange, but for some reason, Huobi had to stop in China and turn to globalization. What are your plans for the future?

Sun: I think the first thing we need to do is to increase the value of Huobi's platform token HT. Just like BNB. BNB has played an irreplaceable role in Binance's success, so we are ready to focus on increasing the value of Huobi.

In addition, I think until now, everyone thinks that Huobi is a Chinese exchange, so I think we still have a lot to work on. There are still many Asian countries, European countries, and South American regions, and I think we still have a very large market. Overall, if you log in to a website like CoinMarketCap or CoinGecko today, Huobi is still one of the top five exchanges.

Coindesk: Let’s get back to the topic of BNB. As an exchange, how does Huobi compete with Binance?

Sun: We all know that BNB is a good example of a platform token. As a financial service institution, Binance’s biggest competitor is undoubtedly Coinbase, but Coinbase’s biggest disadvantage is that it does not have its own platform token, so it cannot form a community and thus cannot gain support from the community.

If you want to develop a good centralized crypto exchange, support from the community is very important, and Binance is the first case in the world that made the platform token so successful, so I think the story of Binance defines the platform token, and that's why I think Huobi should follow this strategy. But I don't mean that we need to beat Binance to become a good exchange.

Coindesk: What do you think about Huobi returning to its homeland one day?

Sun: I think it has something to do with policy. Huobi is a very compliant exchange that actively cooperates with the jurisdiction of different countries and regions. If the environment can become more friendly, we are willing to embrace the market again.

Coindesk: I guess I should rephrase my question, what do you think about future policy trends there?

Sun: I am optimistic. I believe that cryptocurrency and blockchain are already a global trend, and no country can be independent of this global trend. Just like the Internet, they have also benefited greatly from embracing the Internet. That is why I think restrictions will definitely be relaxed, and I even think that there will be the leading player in the global blockchain industry in the future, even if it has encountered some setbacks at present.

USDD and CBDC

Coindesk: In addition to HT, we also know that you have put a lot of effort into the stablecoin USDD. So will USDD be deeply integrated with Huobi in the future?

Sun: Of course. We will make USDD one of the stablecoins used by Huobi. In fact, so far, we have listed 6 best USDD and cryptocurrency token pairs on Huobi. In the future, we will work hard to integrate USDD with all cryptocurrencies.

In addition, we will continue to promote USDD and look for more partners around the world . This is my vision and our future strategy to further cooperate with exchanges to expand the influence of USDD worldwide.

Coindesk: Many countries around the world are now trying central bank digital currencies, so what kind of competitive relationship do you think this will form with stablecoins?

Sun: I think the advantages of stablecoins come from transparency, stability, and open source. CBDC will be proven by the market to be unable to do these. CBDC is not open source, or has strict usage restrictions. I think in the end, people will abandon these centralized stablecoins. This is why I am a believer in the free currency market. Maybe CBDC has many advantages in compliance, but I still think there will be a huge decentralized stablecoin market.

Global Adoption of Web3

Coindesk: Do you have any connection with About Capital?

Sun: Not at the moment, but I can’t guarantee there won’t be in the future.

Coindesk: What do you think of the crypto winter? How long do you think it will last and how long will it take for us to get out of the bottom?

Sun: I think the bear market will continue for at least six months , depending on the Fed’s policy. But I have always been optimistic about cryptocurrencies, just like Tron and the Dominica government recently reached an agreement. We basically built all of Dominica’s financial infrastructure on Tron, and we will soon launch the Dominica national token, the world’s first Web3 national sovereign token. I think this will also promote the global adoption of Web3.