Bitcoin is the ultimate alternative to the traditional financial system

Dozens of companies are using the Bitcoin 2022 conference, which runs from Wednesday to Saturday, as a venue to share announcements to and from the industry and beyond.

New York City and Silicon Valley continue to lead in blockchain startup funding in 2021, with $6.5 billion and $3.9 billion, respectively. But according to market research firm CB Insights, Miami is now tied with Los Angeles, which has raised more than LA's $760 million.

Cryptocurrency trading platform FTX bought the naming rights to an NBA arena in downtown Miami last year, replacing American Airlines. Blockchain.com, the largest cryptocurrency company to move to Miami so far, will house 200 employees in the trendy Wynwood district, where other tech companies and investors have also set up shop.

"Wynwood really has that spirit, and when a new tech sector is established, you're looking for that spirit," said Peter Smith, CEO and co-founder of Blockchain.com, comparing it to San Francisco's South of Market neighborhood and New York's Brooklyn. "Ultimately you want to be around other tech companies."

Many cited the crypto-friendly environment fostered by local officials, primarily Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, who has attracted national attention by attracting tech investment and becoming one of the most crypto-friendly mayors in the United States.

Others pointed out that Miami and Florida are business-friendly cities that have remained open during the pandemic, making them more attractive as a place where people can work remotely.

“It’s hard to deny that this is an amazing opportunity for companies to come here and build their projects in the cryptocurrency space,” said John Bartleman, CEO of TradeStation, a multi-asset broker based in Plantation, Florida.

Bartleman's company commissioned an 11-foot (3-meter) robotic bull statue meant to resemble Wall Street's charging bull. Mayor Suarez unveiled the artwork Wednesday to a jubilant crowd that gathered in Miami Beach for the convention's unveiling.

Welcome to the future of finance, Suarez said. I hand you the Miami Bulls!

All this enthusiasm stands in stark contrast to a tough year for Bitcoin. In financial terms, the cryptocurrency hit a high of $67,553.95 in November before plunging by nearly half in late January; it’s still down about 30% since its November high. Bitcoin has also largely stayed out of many of crypto’s hottest trends, like NFTs.

More broadly, critics have questioned the assumptions behind crypto’s purported value and utility, with some likening the hype and so-far unfulfilled promise of blockchain technology to a Ponzi scheme that benefited early participants but left others stranded.

The increase in fraud and scams related to cryptocurrencies and NFTs has also prompted some consumers to exercise caution.

As Miami aims to attract more investment in cryptocurrency projects, Bitcoin 2022 organizers say at least 75 companies will make announcements at the conference.

Last year, El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele made international news at the conference, announcing via video that his country would become the first to make cryptocurrency legal tender. Bukele will attend this year’s conference.

One of the most anticipated announcements may come from Jack Mallers, 27, CEO of bitcoin payment app Strike, who is working with Bukele’s government to launch bitcoin nationwide.

Mallers has also partnered with Twitter to sync his app with the social network to enable sending digital currency as "tips," and he demonstrated in a video how he sent $10 to a man at a Starbucks in El Salvador.

"Why does anyone still use Western Union? When you combine one of the largest social internets in the world with the best open money network, you find that cryptocurrency is very convenient," he said in a video posted on YouTube.

It remains to be seen what results the effort will produce in the future. South Florida lost more than 18,000 people between July 2020 and July 2021. And critics worry the city doesn’t have a high-caliber university that can train a workforce and allow companies to thrive, as is the case in the Bay Area and New York.

Miami businessman Josip Rupena, who will present his cryptocurrency-backed mortgage startup at the conference, said he would give the effort a few years.

PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel says Buffett is holding back Bitcoin

At the Bitcoin 2022 conference in Miami, Peter Thiel threw cash into the crowd and hurled insults at traditional finance and the tech industry.

Peter Thiel doesn’t care about Ethereum, and he doesn’t care much for several key figures in the financial world. He publicly shared his enemies list today during a speech at the Bitcoin 2022 conference in Miami.

Peter Thiel called Berkshire Hathaway Chairman and CEO Warren Buffett a sociopathic grandpa from Omaha. JPMorgan Chase Chairman Jamie Dimon and BlackRock CEO Larry Fink also joined the list of Bitcoin enemies.

In between throwing cash into the crowd, Peter Thiel accused the three financial tycoons of enabling a system that has institutional and political bias against Bitcoin.

Central banks are broke, we are at the end of the fiat currency system, Peter Thiel declares, and Bitcoin is the ultimate replacement for the entire traditional financial system.

Bitcoin is not Ethereum as a payment system, it’s not electronic gold, it’s something like the S&P 500, it’s the entire stock market, he said.

Although Ethereum is the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, Peter Thiel said he is unsure whether it can maintain its position in the long term.

He said: Bitcoin and Ethereum are two ends of the spectrum, calling Bitcoin low speed, high value and Ethereum high speed. For Thiel, Ethereum's gas fees must go down, adding that it must become completely frictionless in order to work.

The PayPal executive didn't spare the tech industry during his speech, either, and he may have given a thumbs-up to companies he sees as libertarian-leaning, like Meta, but they've always been subject to government regulation.

Peter Thiel said: It is obvious that corporations are controlled by governments to some extent, while Bitcoin never will be.