The 2nd Annual Blockchain and Bitcoin Africa Conference is to be held in Johannesburg South Africa, on 3-4 March 2016 by Bitcoin Events Pty Ltd and organised by Theo Sauls (@theo_sauls) and Sonya Kuhnel who are both members of the local Cape Town bitcoin community. (@BitcoinConf_ZA)
Visit this page for a full breakdown of the 2015 Bitcoin Africa conference in Cape Town
We have been truly overwhelmed with the growth of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology in Africa. Our first Cape Town conference sold out weeks before and we expect Johannesburg will be no different.
Blockchain and bitcoin Africa conference 2016
During the two-day conference in Johannesburg, industry experts from around the world will share their views on as well as their experience of the opportunities and challenges facing digital currencies such as bitcoin and the blockchain technology as well as their impact on the current social, economic and political order. Several African countries will also be represented, such as Botswana, Kenya, Ghana and Zimbabwe.
A great deal of interest has been shown recently in blockchain technology by both financial and non-financial institutions alike. Some of the world’s largest banks are partnering with tech companies to explore how they can use this technology to potentially save billions of dollars and streamline their systems. Companies are investigating how they can use the technology to offer lower transactions fees for payments and remittances. The blockchain technology also offers numerous benefits in terms of transparency for companies and institutions are exploring how they can use this technology for voting, storing of information and executing smart contracts without the need of a third party. Some take-aways will be understanding and participating in the growth of bitcoin and blockchain eco system in Africa.
Some of the speakers so far at the the 2016 conference are:
Ian Merrington
Ian is the Master of Ceremonies of the Blockchain & Bitcoin Africa Conference 2016. Ian is the CEO at The Cape Innovation and Technology Initiative. He is passionate about the role of innovation in solving the challenges faced by modern societies.
Prior to his present role, he spent several years in advertising and consulting services, during which time he was Group Financial Director of BBDO and later Chief Operating Officer for iKineo, a leading Pan-African customer engagement firm. (Linkedin)
Kathryn Haun
Kathryn Haun is a federal prosecutor with the U.S. Department of Justice. Since 2006, she has served as Assistant U.S. Attorney, first in the Washington D.C. area and now in San Francisco, California. She has investigated and prosecuted hundreds of violations of federal criminal law in U.S. courts, with a focus on transnational and organized crime syndicates, the deep web, money laundering, virtual and digital currency providers and – alongside parallel SEC and FinCEN civil enforcement actions – their compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act. She works closely with European law enforcement and regulatory bodies, including EUROPOL and the European Cybercrime Center. (Linkedin)
Marcus Swanepoel
Marcus is Co-founder and CEO of BitX. BitX, a global cryptocurrency platform that provides Bitcoin products and services including wallets, exchanges, merchant integration and APIs to consumers, businesses and developers. Before co-founding BitX, Marcus worked for Standard Chartered in Singapore, and 3i and Morgan Stanley in London. He holds an MBA from INSEAD, is a qualified Chartered Accountant and CFA charter holder. (Linkedin)
Prof. G-J van Rooyen
Prof. G-J is the Co-founder and CEO of Custos Media Technologiesa digital rights monitoring service for the media industry. The company embeds bitcoin bounties as watermarks within videos, which can still be watched normally but if the media passes out of the control of the intended recipient there is a small bitcoin reward that can be collected by one downloader using a free tool. (Linkedin / @gvrooyen)
Simon de la Rouviere
Simon is the Engineer of Societies at ConsenSys. Simon builds decentralised applications for use in the music industry, online communities and the developing world.
Simon has been in the Bitcoin/blockchain space since 2011, developed a decentralised band around a full blown cryptocurrency, and is writing a book on the blockchain. (Linkedin / @simondlr)
Tiana Laurence
Tiana is the Chief Marketing Officer of Factom. Factom is using blockchain technology to change how businesses manage data and keep records. Factom lets developers use the blockchain to build applications. Factom melds security, accessibility, and innovation in such a way that will undoubtedly expedite the use of blockchain technology for non-monetary purposes. (Linkedin / @tianalaurence)
Verengai Mabika
Verengai is the lead business developer at BitFinance, a bitcoin exchange in Zimbabwe that allows its users to buy and sell bitcoin and currently the sole enterprise in Zimbabwe that is not only exploring bitcoin technology but also exploring its use in business (Linkedin / @VerengaiMabika)
Registration for the 2016 conference is now open, with limited seats available.
For more information, visit www.bitcoinconference.co.za or email [email protected].
BitConnect.co Sits Down with Brave Browser CEO Brendan Eich
It has been quite a couple of months for the young Internet browsing company known as Brave. Living up to their namesake, they have received much notoriety since their launch earlier this year, yet the backlash from the online publishing establishment has been just as noteworthy. BitConnect.co sat down with former Chief Architect of Netscape and Mozilla to get the low down on their innovative new web browser, and where Bitcoin fits into the mix.
https://www.bitconnect.co/bitcoin_news/bitcoinfront/details/109
Microsoft Sues U.S. Government Over Requests for Consumer’s Data
In the press and in the market, Apple and
Microsoft may be seen as bitter enemies. Democrats and Republicans.
Bears and Vikings. Hatfield and McCoys. In reality, they may just be two
sides of the same technological coin that have landed in the same
cauldron when it comes to freedom, regulations, and the evergrowing
purview of the U.S. Government. Just a couple of months after Apple
challenges the U.S. Government’s latest power grab, Microsoft heads to
court to fight for their own freedoms.
Land of the Not Really Free
According to Reuters,
Microsoft has filed a lawsuit in Seattle, not far from their corporate
headquarters, against the U.S. Justice Department. The motion contests
the constitutionality of the department’s growing demands for consumer
email data from the email provider. The government’s actions contravene
the Fourth Amendment, which establishes the right for people and
businesses to know if the government searches or seizes their property,
the suit argues, and Microsoft’s First Amendment right to free speech,
disclosing such actions.
“Microsoft
brings this case because its customers have a right to know when the
government obtains a warrant to read their emails, and because Microsoft
has a right to tell them,” Microsoft says in the lawsuit.