Blockchain and The Tim Draper Effect

"I'm going to let you in on a secret...and that is...I never care about what could go wrong. All I think is how HIGH is UP. If this thing is SUCCESSFUL, how BIG can it get." - Tim Draper

At the #BEFLATOKEN Blockchain Economic Forum in San Francisco with world leaders and #blockchain thought leaders, Silicon Valley VC Legend and Early #Bitcoin Billionaire Investor, Tim Draper shared his journey and perspectives with Gary Gensler, #MIT lecturer and 11th chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission #CFTC

The Tim Draper Effect is incredible to witness first-hand. The room was captivated with blockchain founders, investors and enthusiasts listening to Tim's views and banters with Gary. After the fireside chat, people rushed up on stage to take a selfie with Tim. Notable quotes from Tim Draper highlighted below.

Watch Tim's fireside chat with Gary at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=526&v=BLqB7OwkI00

How Tim got into bitcoin, lost it all and got back in

Tim invested in Bitcoin at $4.00 in 2011 and stored his bitcoins in the biggest exchange at the time -- Mt Gox. Mt Gox got hacked and disappeared with all the money. Bitcoin dropped only about 15% that day. Tim got back into bitcoin becoming the winning bidder in a US Marshals’ auction of seized bitcoins from Silk Road.

Tim’s predictions

When bitcoin was $230, Tim predicted that it would go to $10,000. It did. Tim predicts that bitcoin will go from $,6400 to $250,000 by 2022

The difference between Tim Draper and Warren Buffet

“I have a lot of bitcoins, so I care a lot about bitcoins. Warren Buffet has a lot of fiat currency. He has a lot of dollars. He doesn’t like fact that there’s a better currency.”

Why blockchain & cryptocurrency?

“It’s decentralized, it’s cross-border, it’s global and it’s frictionless.

So why would you want a currency that’s tied to the whims of some government official or some central bank, when you can have a currency that is global and open, and everybody sees it.”

Isn’t bitcoin really volatile?

“One bitcoin is still worth one bitcoin. It’s just all the other currencies are volatile as they disappear from view. They are in panic mode because they see that there is a better way to do things...and that continues to happen.”

How do you see it changing the world of venture capital?

“I’ve been in venture capital long enough so that I embrace change and I’m looking for change. I got out in front of this.

I know something was happening. I had the innovator’s dilemma. I saw that finance was going to change. It turned out if was bitcoin and the ICO market.

What these ICOs are..they’re kickstarters for societal transformation.”

Tim’s secret to success

"I'm going to let you in on a secret...and that is...I never care about what could go wrong. All I think is how HIGH is UP. If this thing is SUCCESSFUL, how BIG can it get."

Tim’s advice

“Just so you know it and feel it. Go set up a Coinbase account, put some money in and buy some bitcoin. 

Go buy a ledger/USB thing. plug it in. Download some cryptocurrency. Pull it off. Look at it and look at the big bank building.

It’s so simple and it’s FREEING. We start to realize that there is still the geographic borders but it’s less important and there is this global thing that is virtual that is on top of it all.”

How to transform government?

“I think government needs to compete and they have to complete in this new way.

80% of what a government does can be done in the blockchain. It can be done with smart contracts in the blockchain with bitcoin. You can redistribute, collect taxes, you can set up drivers license, you can do medical insurance, you can do all these things in a virtual way and that pretty much shrinks gov’t down and make government compete across borders.

You are going to start seeing these governments compete for all of us. They are going to be able provide better healthcare insurance, better safety net, better pension...all these things...and much more effectively, much more efficiently and cheaper...so why wouldn’t we all go with that?”

About the Speakers

Tim Draper, Founder, DFJ Fund ($5 bln AUM) & Draper University. Tim has been one of the first investors in Skype, Baidu, Tesla, Hotmail as well as others. He has been declared one of the "100 Most Powerful People in Finance" from Worth. He is regarded as one of the Top 100 most influential Harvard Alumni, as well as being chosen as the "#1 Top Venture Capital Dealmaker" by Always-On.

Gary Gensler. MIT lecturer and Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission #CFTC (under President Barack Obama), Former Undersecretary of the United States Treasury for domestic finance, (1999-2001) and Assistant Secretary of the Treasury (1997-1999). Former Co-Head of Finance, Goldman Sachs, and CFO for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign.

Watch Tim's fireside chat with Gary at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=526&v=BLqB7OwkI00