Forbes: Tokens as the Future of Finance

Our COO Peter Sumer recently gave an interview to the Polish Forbes. Read the English version below.

About the difference between tokens and cryptocurrencies, how BITmarkets Token will differ from other tokens on the market today, and what are BITmarkets' plans for further developments. We interviewed Peter Sumer, Chief Operations Officer at cryptocurrency exchange BITmarkets and CISI-approved Investment Operations Analyst.

What are tokens and how are they created?

Tokens have been around for many years. The currency that you are now using to pay for your coffee is considered as fiat token. The messages that you are sending to your friends and that are transmitted on the network are regarded as process tokens. We have always been dealing with the tokens but in different types. Cryptocurrencies, or crypto tokens, are now a new version of transmitting both the data and value through the network of distributed ledger technologies. Its transparency, cost-effectiveness, and security is what makes them attractive to new users apart from the potential price appreciation.

Are tokens a temporary trend or the future of finance?

Demand for cryptocurrencies has been growing rapidly. The market capitalization of cryptocurrencies are expected to grow more than 12% annually, based on the compound annual growth rate. The general reason is that the world is getting digitized and people are on-screen more than ever. The more in-depth reason is that the use of crypto tokens is inevitable in terms of transaction execution comfort and low network fees. Of course, the journey is to be very long until it reaches the market capitalization worth of stock markets nowadays, but once it does, we will experience a different way of doing business, which would be much more effective and transparent.

BITmarkets launches its own token. How will it differ from other tokens on the market?

BITmarkets Token, or BTMT, is a platform native token aimed for users of the BITmarkets crypto exchange. Purchasing and holding a BTMT brings lots of benefits and even governance power to its investors. Apart from discounting the trading fees or having exclusive access to the features on the platform with the VIP support, we focused more on how to create an economic and social value for our investors.

We have thus decided to create an ESG (environmental, social and governance) fund upon which the BTMT investors could decide on which projects or even companies BITmarkets should focus on in terms of ESG responsible investing. BTMT holders will be able to liaise together through any social-networking activities or polls to govern the process.

Also, we will help new companies and projects issue their tokens through the ICO dashboard by owning the BTMT, and thus, granting them a full access to the most liquid markets while benefiting from ever growing BTMT ecosystem.

Who will be able to buy it and how will they be able to use it?

BTMT is soon to be sold out in its pre-exchange listing when it becomes freely exchangeable. After the successful Private Sale that ended on 18th of June, 2023, we are now proceeding to the Public Sale of BTMT. We plan to introduce the Public Sale in the end of the third quarter of this year. All our registered users will have access to participate in the BITmarkets project and benefit from the price quotes offered only to early investors. The rewards for BTMT staking will be introduced in 2024.

BITmarkets has been around since 2022 and has grown rapidly. Where did the idea to launch a new cryptocurrency exchange come from, of which there are many on the market and what do you want to stand out from?

BITmarkets was co-founded by me and built up by the team of professionals from the financial services industry. We have dedicated our time and invention to financial technologies for the past couple of years and brought together a vision of creating a crypto exchange with a focus on customer support and personalized account management services. We believe in education and we strive to provide the utmost levels of knowledge for new customers, whether they are newbies or advanced investors, and help them transit to digital finance with more confidence and preparation by including the human touch and contact to our operations.

In which regions does BITmarkets currently operate and what are the plans for its development, especially when it comes to expanding its reach and ensuring easy accessibility for everyone?

Under the motto ‘Crypto made simple’ we provide 24/7 customer support on the phone or email in more than 15 local languages. We have created the environment as user-friendly as possible with the focus on the main products and services only for the beginners, while still providing the high-quality trading features for the advanced users.

Our major focus is on Europe and Asia so far. As we are registered in Lithuania, BITmarkets reach out to EU customers in all major developed markets including Poland. In Asia, we are based in Dubai and now in the process of preparation for obtaining the world-class license by VARA. We will also be marking our presence in India soon and, in addition, BITmarkets can be also found operating in African countries like Rwanda or Kenya.

You have gone from the mainstream investment industry to a crypto company. In your opinion, what are the most important differences and similarities between the two sectors and is it possible to cooperate between them to the benefit of customers?

I can illustrate the synergy of both worlds, the financial and the crypto, on our cutting-edge products. We have recently launched two new great features for active traders that are hardly available at other exchanges – direct margin account deposit and zero margin requirement for hedged positions. Since you cannot really enhance the trading experience on the spot exchange apart from listing new tokens and deepening the liquidity, we are strongly focusing on the active traders’ experience and strive to provide the best possible features there.

All-in-all what makes the industry of crypto exchanges so thrilling to me is that we can experience so many diverse projects. I am happy to see that the crypto exchanges are still flourishing though there are so many of them already. There is still a lot of space for us to cover, and of course, it is our duty to take as much market share as possible, though, we also strive to support each other’s growth and participate in the crypto adoption as best as we can.

Translated from the Polish article https://www.forbes.pl/finanse/tokeny-sa-przyszloscia-finansow/jspe8en