A former recruiter is looking to launch a new digital publication covering the latest news and developments in blockchain and cryptocurrencies.
Sheba Karamat will launch Coin Rivet this month and hopes it will provide an entry point into the complex world of Bitcoin and its rivals.
“We will try to champion the consumer,” said Karamat. “There seems to be a handful of white dudes making loads of money out of cryptocurrencies.
“Fundamentally it’s just so difficult to understand that you have to have three degrees to make sense of it.
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“Coin Rivet will inform people in a simple way that’s easy to understand.”
Cryptocurrencies are digital money that are designed to be secure. Transactions are tracked using a public ledger called blockchain.
Coin Rivet marks Karamat’s first foray into digital media, but she said she has plenty of contacts from within the financial technology – or “fintech” – industry from her time as a recruiter.
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“I started about six weeks ago on this digital publication. It’s all very new,” she said.
“I’ve got 20 years’ worth of connections in fintech, banking, gaming, and online retail, so I thought sod-it, I’m going to set up a new website.”
Coin Rivet has an editorial team which consists of an editorial director, editor-in-chief, and sub-editor, and also has ten freelances working to cover developments within the industry from across the globe.
Karamat said: “I have correspondents based worldwide who are starting to contribute globally to what the latest news is and what blockchain technology is up to in their part of the world.”
Sheba Karamat
Karamat will look for a further ten paid freelancers to contribute to the site when it launches next month in order to make sure all sections – including, news, interviews, features and tips – are updated daily, she said.
“A guide section will cover the basics such as history of blockchain, what is blockchain and how do I use it? And is it safe?” said Karamat.
Tips will come from industry experts and will cover the top ten cryptocurrencies.
Interviews will include the head of blockchain at PWC, while features will cover topics such as women in the industry and how blockchain tech can improve healthcare in America.
Karamat added: “It’s very much about news, analysis, opinion and insight and we are covering the topic on a more global level.”
Coin Rivet will be primarily funded by advertising, but any cryptocurrency companies hoping to advertise with the media site will have to meet Karamat’s approval – for example having a white paper and “open token policy”.
Despite its technical nature, Karamat does not believe blockchain and cryptocurrency is too much of a niche area for a media company to cover.
She said: “It is aimed at people with an interest in blockchain, but I fundamentally think the technology will affect everyone globally over time.”
Blockchain is proving useful in other ways for digital media with The Register, the UK’s largest technology news site, using the cryptocurrency technology to allow micropayments.
The website is using the Satoshipay system which will give readers a virtual wallet to spend on articles and videos on their website.
Gavin Clarke, managing editor of The Register said: “The publishing industry is locked in a battle between readers who don’t want invasive ads and publishers who want to monetise their content.
“Recent advances in blockchain and cryptocurrencies offer the chance to break that deadlock.”
Satoshipay claims to make micropayments a more viable option for publishers as the system has much lower transaction payments than credit card and PayPal purchases.
Meinhard Benn, founder of SatoshiPay, said: “The way people consume media is changing and technology is playing a huge role in evolving publishers’ content payment methods and sources of income.
“We see blockchain technology and Stellar in particular as a significant enabler of this evolution. With micropayments, publishers can cater for their readers’ demand for reduced advertising, while charging a small fee for viewing content.”
Picture: Pixabay
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