Medici Ventures Makes Strategic Investment In Cryptocurrency Rewarding Social Media Site
Scroll DownMedici Ventures, which is a venture capital firm owned by Internet retailer Overstock.com, has announced that they have made an investment in a decentralized social media company called Minds.com. Minds.com began in 2011, and it differentiates itself from other social media companies in that it rewards user activity on its site with digital currency. It also shares revenue with its users and provides them with free page views. Not long ago, the company issued its own native cryptocurrency called $MINDS. Based on Ethereum, this is what it now provides users of the site. While neither company released specific investment figures, Medici Ventures categorized the investment as a Series A investment. As part of the deal, Patrick M. Byrne — who is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Overstock.com — will sit on the board of directors of Minds.com. It is also being reported that Minds.com has implemented a Digital Bill of Rights for its users. This Bill of Rights is based on the Manila Principles of the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), and it will ensure that Minds.com's users have "freedom of speech" on its site. Overstock.com — and Byrne in particular — have long been interested in digital currencies and their underlying blockchain technology. Just this month, Medici Ventures invested in an Israeli company called VinX, which is developing a wine futures platform that will use digital tokens. Another Overstock.com subsidiary called Medici Land Governance — which is a land registry company that uses blockchain technology — previously signed an agreement with the government of Zambia. This agreement allows it to work with Zambia in improving land ownership claims and in increasing access to financial markets for rural landowners. Byrne, who has been a Bitcoin enthusiast from the early years of its development, worried some of his investors last month when he reportedly sold around 10% of his holdings for $20 million. Though he afterward sent an open letter to them indicating that he was still very much committed to the company. He further indicated that he was going to invest most of the proceeds of the sale into related ventures.
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