Bitcoin.com has announced the launch of a new initiative to promote decentralized finance and self-custody while compensating those who have lost out due to the failure of centralized crypto companies. The VERSE wallet token, which will be released by Bitcoin.com in December, will be used to fund the CEX Education Program. There will be 5% of all VERSE tokens created to set aside for the initiative.
By joining up at getverse.com, victims of FTX, Blockfi, Celsius, Voyager, and other centralized projects that have failed in the past may get compensation via the CEX Education Program. Bitcoin.com plans to keep running the programme to help victims and encourage them to switch to self-custodial services in the future.
Bitcoin.com CEO Dennis Jarvis stated:
“With slick UX, logos on sports stadiums, Matt Damon commercials, Tom Brady endorsements, and big ‘guaranteed’ returns, the lure of CeFi is strong. But as we’ve seen, lack of transparency in the centralized model, whether it be in crypto or tradfi, is an enabler for the gross mismanagement of customer funds and, in some cases, blatant fraud.”
“Centralized companies masquerade as ‘crypto,’ but in reality their business model relies on separating users from their coins, which is antithetical to the entire proposition of crypto. Bitcoin and decentralized finance are transformative precisely because they empower people to take custody of their assets while at the same time enforcing radical transparency in the underlying financial infrastructure. The CEX Education Program is an effort to provide the incentives needed to encourage the transition away from risky centralized exchanges to self-custody, where the real benefits of this technology lie.”
Bitcoin.com has always advocated for people to have the right to self-custody. The Bitcoin.com Wallet, a self-custodial service that is both secure and user-friendly, has introduced millions of people to the crypto ecosystem. Users who keep their own private keys to their cryptocurrency wallets are safer against fraud and incompetent administration than those who give up control of their crypto assets to third parties.
With over 35 million wallets generated across five blockchains (including Ethereum, Avalanche, and Polygon), the Bitcoin.com Wallet is a major retail entry point to DeFi. Bitcoin.com’s commitment to DeFi is supported by VERSE, which will reward users for purchasing, selling, storing, utilizing, and learning about cryptocurrencies while aiding individuals who are seeking accessible onboarding into the self-custodial model.
Bitcoin.com’s dedication to its aim of empowering individuals to freely participate in decentralized finance was hardened by the collapse of FTX and Alameda.
“Despite this and other implosions occurring in CeFi (not DeFi), it’s nevertheless a black eye for the whole industry. Many who got burned will leave, and many more still on the sidelines will view it as a reason to stay away – and that’s a real shame because decentralized finance is a force for good. Bitcoin.com has decided to do something about this situation that will extend some sort of recompense, promote the foundational tenets of self-custody and DeFi, and help build back this industry stronger than ever.”
