IOTA is Climbing Back

IOTA, the 16th biggest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, which wants to be the backbone for the Internet of Things (IoT), skyrocketed after announcing a partnership with British car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover. In practically no time, the price of the IoT-powered coin skyrocketed by nearly 16%.

Yet, it is important to note that this isn’t the first time IOTA has been courted by major automobile companies. In 2018, Audi announced a partnership with the Germany-based cryptocurrency which saw the two groups create prototype uses for the Tangle.

In the newest partnership, Jaguar is considering rewarding car drivers who choose to share car data. The company is currently testing software that would let car drivers earn IOTA; the tokens could then be used to pay for tolls, parking and charging for electric cars. To get rewards, drivers would need to enable automatic data reporting, for instance, regarding traffic information or potholes to navigation providers or local authorities.

Further, rewards will be also available to drivers taking part in Jaguar’s ride-sharing program. Jaguar's plan is to achieve zero emissions, zero accidents, and zero congestion. Jaguar is testing the technology at Jaguar Land Rover software engineering base in Shannon, Ireland. However, it has not yet created a timeline for product commercialisation. The price of IOTA went up 19% since the news broke.

Reflecting on the announcement, IOTA’s co-founder Dominik Schiener said the following:

“The smart wallet technology … can be easily adapted into all new vehicles. IOTA wants to enable interoperability with all these different players. So there is no Jaguar coin, no BMW coin, but one universal token for this machine economy.”

Can IOTA make it to the mainstream?

The partnership with the big-name car manufacturer caused a storm of hype in the cryptocurrency community. Yet, at the point of writing the coin has stabilised and now sits somewhere between $0.29-0.30 with a market cap of $832 million.

Looking at the bigger picture, two key problems still have not been resolved:

1. Using the coin for automation and machine-to-machine economy.
2. The problem of the central coordinator, or training-wheels, as IOTA still needs a central node coordinating all transactions, given the DAG-based structure.

If the above issues would be addressed and if the adoption and utility of the token keeps growing, I see no reason for MIOTA not to come back and become a widely used and useful cryptocurrency of the future.

As a bonus, I kindly invite you to read this????

All you need to know about IOTA

Follow my Weekly FinTech Digest if you haven't yet! There I'm covering the hottest stories and latest development in the FinTech space.

If you are interested in crypto and blockchain, you must follow my Weekly Blockchain & Crypto Digest, where I'm covering the hottest stories and developments in the crypto space.

P.S. You might enjoy my earlier pieces as well:

?? The Biggest Deals in FinTech History are Taking Place NOW

?? Month in Blockchain & Crypto | March 2019

?? Month in FinTech | March 2019

?? Lithuania's 10 Years Challenge - from Developing Country to European FinTech Hub

?? Bitcoin is NOT a Currency, and Never Will Be

***

About: I am a business developer, sales professional, FinTech strategist, as well as Cryptocurrency and Blockchain enthusiast. I'm highly passionate about Financial Technology and Digital Innovation, and strongly believe that it will change the world for the better. Apart from my daily job at one of the leading alternative banking and payments providers in EEA, I'm an active member of FinTech community and a TechFin evangelist.

If you've enjoyed this piece, don't hesitate to press like, comment what you think and share the article with others. Let's spread the knowledge together!

For more, follow me on LinkedIn & Instagram. I'm building the best community the social world has ever seen!????