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As cryptocurrency makes the rounds across the globe, its buzz has reached Haiti in the form of donations and nascent projects. In this series, The Haitian Times takes a look at a few players and the pros and cons if digital currencies were to take root in Haiti.\u00a0 For definitions of certain terms used, <\/em>view this glossary.<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n _____________________________________________________________<\/p>\n WISCONSIN \u2014 \u201cIt is worth nothing. It is based on nothing. There is no underlying asset to act as an anchor of safety.\u201d So said European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde about the value of cryptocurrencies, during a May 12 television interview<\/a>, as the crypto market took a nosedive.\u00a0<\/p>\n While the cryptocurrency market sent the economic sector into a tailspin, Haiti\u2019s actual yam vendors \u2014 featured in some proponents\u2019 visions<\/a> \u2014 continued to sell their vegetables. Few of these vendors have access to financial services, a place to put their savings, a way to take out a loan. Some advocates of financial system reform in Haiti look to cryptocurrency as the technological and financial revolution that can provide that change.\u00a0<\/p>\n But is cryptocurrency or the technology behind it \u2014 blockchains \u2014 the right solution and at what cost? These are the questions splitting proponents and opponents of cryptocurrency in Haiti into divergent camps.<\/p>\n \u201cA blockchain network,\u201d said Iwa Salami, co-director of the Centre of FinTech<\/a> at the University of East London, \u201cis very useful for any financial system, particularly if we\u2019re looking at the fear amongst investors of investing.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFor example, in foreign direct investments \u2014 in countries such as Haiti, the lack of transparency, a lot of times, is a problem for many investors. So, the adoption of blockchain technology and a financial system like this really has the potential to give those investors reassurance. They will be able to see where the investments are going and how the investments are being used.\u201d<\/p>\n Cryptocurrency and blockchain technology<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n To fully evaluate the potential for crypto in Haiti, it helps to understand that cryptocurrency is built on a blockchain \u2014 a series of ledgers or databases, time-stamped and linked together. A network <\/em>of computers manages a blockchain \u2014 not a single centralized <\/em>system as in a database. Like using a Google doc or other collaborative document, everyone can see what\u2019s happening in a blockchain.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cSome blockchains have no cryptocurrency,\u201d said Raul Zambrano<\/a>, an international development expert who researches innovation and technologies that can enhance access to public information.\u00a0<\/p>\n Hyperledger<\/a>, for example, is a blockchain platform used by businesses such as IBM and Walmart.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThey don\u2019t want to get involved in the crypto stuff. It\u2019s too complicated \u2014 it\u2019s too risky, because of the prices and the expectations,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Blockchain has been used successfully in Haiti in certain instances as well. One mango supply chain project<\/a> \u2014 overseen by the Haitian Ministry of Commerce and Industry, with World Bank funds \u2014 illustrated that products grown and processed in Haiti can be sold and shipped to the U.S. profitably. The agricultural project was declared a success when participating mango farmers earned 7.5 times more than before.\u00a0<\/p>\n Notably, the participants were paid in gourdes, not cryptocurrency.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cYou can actually deploy blockchain in Haiti without crypto,\u201d Zambrano said. \u201cYou can have a blockchain for farmers who want to trace food from country to table. That\u2019s blockchain. You don\u2019t need crypto for that at all.\u201d<\/p>\n Crypto systems require energy, a lot more than other systems<\/strong><\/p>\n