Tim Youngblood | September 21, 2017
Cryptocurrencies and Blockchain Technology in the International Cannabis Industry
The cannabis industry is moving toward cryptocurrencies for international business. With so many new ones popping up in the market, what are the differences between them?
The cannabis industry is moving toward cryptocurrencies for international business. With so many new ones popping up in the market, what are the differences between them?
Since the inception of Bitcoin, people have had a fascination with decentralized currency. The international cannabis trade is moving in this direction for a number of reasons. Decentralized cryptocurrencies maintain relative value, as opposed to using national currencies, whose value can go up and down due to political factors despite a business's product not changing. Then, for growers in the United States, there's always the threat of the Federal Government making an example of a grower despite being in a state where cannabis is fully legalized. With major banks staying out of the cannabis industry, even basic business functions like paying taxes can be difficult for growers. It's no wonder why the industry has such an interest in cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology.
Blockchain technology does more than just provide encryption for financial transactions. It provides encryption for just about any digital transaction. The Bitcoin blockchain is even used by Medicinal Genomics to serve as a time stamp for users who upload genetic information about their plants to Kannapedia. If you're interested in learning about decentralized currency for international business transactions, I've highlighted three cryptocurrencies that were developed specifically for the cannabis industry.
CHEX Token
Cannabis Hemp Exchange (CHEX) Token began development back in 2014 and is currently running a sale for larger buyers (Buying CHEX Tokens in bulk gives discounts). The currency and associated platform also offers marketing data, order management, and a distribution tool. CHEX aims to make a platform that all sectors of the cannabis industry (growers, distributors, sellers, and services) can share secured transactions. What separates CHEX from other cannabis cryptocurrencies is their efforts to make a community around it and their integration of marketing tools and services.
Learn More About CHEX Token
PotCoin
Recently, PotCoin has been in the news for sponsoring a diplomatic venture to North Korea with Dennis Rodman. PotCoin has actually been around since 2014, and of the currencies, is probably the most similar to the original Bitcoin. Users used to be able to mine for Potcoin just like with Bitcoin, but PotCoin has since moved to paying coin owners interest based on some variables such as, how much Potcoin they own and making frequent transactions. PotCoin comes with several options for digital wallets as well as an open source code that allows users to integrate PotCoin transactions into websites and apps. Since PotCoin has been around for a few years, at this point in time, it has the most customization and developer support.
Learn More About PotCoin
- PotCoin Wallets and Tutorials
- How to Buy PotCoin with BitCoin
- PotCoin Developer Resources (This includes the source code, blockchain monitoring, and APIs to integrate PotCoin transactions into websites and apps)
Paragon Coin
ParagonCoin is currently running a crowdsale after launching a few days ago. Paragon runs on the Ethereum blockchain like BitCoin and as far as I could tell, doesn't use any mind-blowing new technology. What separates ParagonCoin from these other cryptocurrencies is Paragon's effort to create an offline infrastructure for cannabis-based transactions such as assigning or verifying properties of physical products, creating scannable bar codes and RFID chips, and "ParagonSpace". "ParagonSpaces "are essentially brick and mortar office buildings in areas commercially zoned for cannabis business. These are supposed to be office spaces that allow companies to collaborate, give presentations, and have access to things like mass paper printing. Basically, these are like office centers for tech startups but all transactions are done in ParagonCoin (Seriously, even the vending machines...)
Learn More About ParagonCoin
- ParagonCoin White Paper (PDF)
- ParagonCoin Risk Factors (PDF)
*This is by no means a comprehensive list, so if there are cryptocurrencies that you're interested in, please share them in the comments! Please read the documentation for each cryptocurrency before investing in one.
*Featured image courtesy of ParagonCoin.
