While the COVID-19 pandemic decimated certain industries like tourism and retail, other entirely new industries have emerged. Two years ago, the concept of a “metaverse” was virtually unknown. Today, the term is trending everywhere online, with new companies and funds entering the space every week — billions of dollars have already been poured into this industry. Just last week, Mark Zuckerberg announced that Facebook will become a metaverse company. Meanwhile, few “metaverse” companies have any real scale or customers, which makes it easy for onlookers to dismiss it as a trend that may flame out. We would caution against that. …

There are many things to think about when entering this field: what inspires someone to do so; how blockchain technology, crypto and DeFi match with your overall personal or professional philosophy; and how one can change the life of others through promoting DeFi adoption, breaking the stigma surrounding this industry. Have you ever considered entering the decentralized world of blockchain technology? Is there anything holding you back? In the DeFi industry, the above questions could be very intimidating, but the many women who have cracked into the space are changing the way decentralization is perceived. Getting women involved in an …

Women looking for a way to enter a male-dominated space like crypto and blockchain may be drawn in by nonfungible tokens, according to Women in Blockchain Talks founder and host Lavinia Osbourne. Though the ongoing pandemic has left people in many countries in financial trouble — whether by losing their jobs, being unable to physically go to banks, or other concerns — Osbourne told Cointelegraph the event may have pushed many women into crypto and blockchain once they were forced to move on from other careers. She said the recent surge and media coverage of nonfungible tokens, or NFTs, had …

While Bitcoin (BTC) may be considered as a store of value for many, some consumers across the globe may be thinking otherwise. Recent data has revealed that 46 million people in the United States plan to use cryptocurrency to pay for things such as groceries or real estate. Payments giant Visa further revealed in July that its crypto-enabled cards processed over $1 billion in total spending during the first half of this year. As such, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that major brands like Starbucks, Home Depot and Target have started putting Bitcoin on their balance sheets. Yet, as …

As established by Satoshi Nakamoto's Bitcoin (BTC) whitepaper, the core of cryptocurrency is a peer-to-peer electronic cash system that eliminates the need for intermediaries like banks. This spirited independence and scoffing at the hand-holding of traditional banking systems is pervasive across the cryptosphere. Yet, when mass adoption is the goal, some hand-holding becomes necessary in order to bring everyone along on the journey toward truly decentralized finance. We cannot expect our grandparents — who have difficulty sending an email — to sort out how to manage private keys, seed phrases and digital wallets and send your birthday gift in Bitcoin …

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the director general of the World Trade Organization and former foreign and finance minister of Nigeria, said blockchain technology could help empower unbanked and underbanked women around the world. Cointelegraph editor-in-chief Kristina Cornèr addressed the G20 High Level Independent Panel on Financing the Global Commons for Pandemic Preparedness and Response today, asking regulators and lawmakers how blockchain technology could help promote financial inclusion for women in the time of COVID-19 and beyond. Okonjo-Iweala, a co-chair on the panel, was the only one out of several members including representatives from the United States and Singapore to speak on women …

The chief operating officer of stock and cryptocurrency trading app Robinhood aims for significant growth in the number of female customers, particularly when it comes to investing in crypto. In an interview with Business Insider published Wednesday, Robinhood COO Gretchen Howard said the number of women using the trading app had more than tripled, representing a 369% increase year-on-year. In addition, the platform reported in March that 40% of its active female customers were trading crypto, a seven-fold increase over 2020. "To me it feels like, wow, we've enabled these women to trade crypto," said Howard. “[Crypto is] very new, …

Dubbed as “the largest Bitcoin event in history,” Bitcoin 2021 consisted of 12,000 attendees from across the globe. Undoubtedly, Bitcoin (BTC) adoption is growing at an impressive rate. Yet judging by the attendance at Bitcoin 2021, men still appear to be the primary audience for Bitcoin. While the lines to the bathroom made it obvious that there were nowhere near as many female attendees as there were males, there were also fewer women speakers than men at Bitcoin 2021. For example, only 27 women are featured on the Bitcoin 2021 website, which consists of over 150 speakers in total. Although …

The tech industry is notorious for its male-dominated culture, and unfortunately, the blockchain space may still be exhibiting this, at least for the time being. Although female cryptocurrency investors are on the rise, men still make up the majority of job positions within the blockchain sector. This could be due to a number of reasons, such as a lack of funding for female-led blockchain companies or the ever-present gender wage gap in tech. According to recent data collected by AI-driven marketplace Hired, female candidates for tech jobs received wages that were 3% lower than their male counterparts. While discouraging, women …

While it’s encouraging to see that the number of female crypto investors is on the rise, women participation within the blockchain technology sector remains low. This was recently confirmed in a report from the World Economic Forum, which found that the COVID-19 pandemic has pushed back gender parity by an entire generation. Vesselina Ratcheva, new economy and society lead for the World Economic Forum, further told Cointelegraph that women indeed remain a minority in the blockchain industry. Funding of women-led blockchain projects Fortunately, a number of new funding initiatives are being offered to drive female participation within the blockchain sector. …

While almost everyone agrees the blockchain industry needs to address the under representation of women in the sector, experts remain divided on the best way to achieve it. Should we take an interventionist approach or hope that as blockchain becomes more widespread it will hold more appeal outside of its core demographics? Recent data from trading platform eToro, which has 18 million registered users, suggests women account for just 15% of Bitcoin traders, and 12% of Ether traders. Panellists at an Australian Blockchain Week event on April 21 offered a range of views on how to provide more diversity in …

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted people across the world, yet a new report from the World Economic Forum suggests that women have been one of the hardest hit gender groups. WEF’s “Global Gender Gap Report 2021” found that the pandemic has pushed back gender parity by an entire generation. Specifically, the report notes that as the COVID-19 pandemic continues, the gender gap between men and women across various professional sectors will now take 135.6 years to close, rather than the previously expected 99.5 years. Gender parity within fast growth professions Vesselina Ratcheva, new economy and society lead for the World …