Blockchain.com announced it was looking for a new home for its American headquarters and uprooted itself from New York and relocated to downtown Miami. Blockchain CEO Peter Smith says while New York is a great city but Miami was easy to settle on.
Miami is a city with warm weather and vibrant nightlife, while that is a strong attraction for business, Smith said the decision came down to Miami being better aligned with his business's goals. Smith says it's a gateway to Latin America, on the East Coast time zone and it's become one of the most exciting cities in the world about cryptocurrencies.
Digital currencies like bitcoin and dogecoin are becoming the future of finance and Miami is fighting to become the crypto capital of the world. This is all a serious threat to New York's reputation as the nation's financial hub, a serious threat to New York's dominance in the financial market.
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez has raised the city's crypto-currency profile. During his first term, Suarez has accepted Bitcoin and blockchain and the technology for all that it is. He has become the first mayor to take his 401k savings in Bitcoin. Miami now has its own digital currency, called MiamiCoin and in 2020, it hosted what has become one of the world's largest cryptocurrency conferences.
Crypto has become an important part of the future of Miami and its future as the financial hub of the country. What also drew Smith to Miami was the cost of living is lower and the reduction in real estate taxes. It also offers more space for development than New York.
Other cryptocurrency companies FTX US, eToro, and Bit Digital have also announced plans to grow in Miami. Miami has also drawn more traditional financial firms. Miami's recent successes have drawn concern from New York City's mayor-elect, Eric Adams responded to Miami's latest news by tweeting out that NYC will be the center of the digital currency industry.
While Smith prefers Miami in the long run, he does acknowledge that New York has all the tools, it's a matter of putting it together and reaching out to investors and others.
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