Blockchain technology has gone from being part of a niche industry to being used by many large corporations around the globe. The increase in use and acceptance was a direct result of several awareness programs as well as the support from the industry’s major players.
On April 22, it was revealed that multiple organizations including PayPal, Winklevoss Capital, and Andreesen Horowitz were pitching in to support Celo to conduct an 8-week blockchain camp. The aim of the camp is to discover blockchain startups that can make a mark in the industry with the winners set to receive $30,000 in prize money.
The Celo Foundation first came into the limelight when it announced itself as the competitor to Facebook’s now troubled Libra. Celo is set to team up with Upright, a virtual events platform to host 18 blockchain startups that will vie for the coveted winner position. Companies like Andreesen Horowitz and Polychain will act as mentors to the selected startups to help them achieve their goals in a sustainable manner.
Alon Shavit, the co-founder of Upright had stated recently:
“Mentors will provide guidance to the teams. In some cases, that guidance will be technical, while in others it will be focused on go-to market strategy. A mentor-matching process is used to understand a mentor’s areas of interest, including specific use cases or geographies and a team’s needs.”
The Celo Camp is an independent initiative run by entrepreneurs with a passion for seeing the world adopt digital currencies. The camp commenced on April 20 and will run till June 15. All the selected teams will receive custom guidance on their technology and business strategy to help and grow their product.
Sources from Celo revealed that Ben Perszyk from Polychain, Alex Pruden from Andreesen Horowitz, Efrat Katz from Paypal, and Jane Lippencott from Winklevoss Capital will act as the guidance support for the competitors. The startup coming out on top will receive $10,000 and a chance to meet with Celo in either Brazil, San Fransisco, or Argentina.
One of the biggest takeaways from the camp was that there was a massive innovation sector brewing in Latin America, according to Shavit. These startups were tapping into blockchain and decentralized technology to provide real-world solutions. The camp has gained massive popularity because the participant list includes companies from all across the globe.
The ongoing camp is set to boost Celo’s reputation in the blockchain and cryptocurrency space. This will be especially helpful in its bid to outdo Facebook’s Libra and Calibra. Celo can probably take heart from the fact that many former members of the Libra Association were now part of its own Celo Alliance.
At the time of writing, Bitcoin was trading for $7028 with a total market cap of $128.8 billion. A 2.87 percent drop in Bitcoin’s price over the previous day had brought down the 24-hour market volume down to $32.7 billion. Bitcoin’s dip also triggered the altcoin market to take a tumble towards the bear’s path. The Bitcoin Cash family and Litecoin were the biggest losers among the top 10 cryptocurrency club.