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This is a promoted article.<\/em><\/p>\n Surfin\u2019 Bitcoin Conference, Casino Barri\u00e8re Biarritz, France.<\/em><\/p>\n Josselin Tonnellier<\/a> organized the first Surfin\u2019 Bitcoin Conference<\/a> to educate people about Bitcoin and his French startup StackinSat<\/a>, through which Europeans can accumulate Bitcoin via dollar cost averaging. <\/p>\n \u201cBitcoin is quite niche in France. We have a lot of blockchain and shitcoining,\u201d Tonnellier remarked.<\/p>\n There aren\u2019t many Bitcoin-only businesses in France. It\u2019s remarkable that a team of about five people was able to coordinate and fund a conference of Surfin\u2019 Bitcoin\u2019s size, with just ten sponsors, notably among them Bpifrance, an investment bank for entrepreneurs.<\/p>\n\n According to Tonnellier, more than half of this year\u2019s conference attendees were professional Bitcoiners. Nearly 25% were Bitcoin enthusiasts and OGs, and about 25% of them were general crypto enthusiasts.<\/p>\n Tonnellier originally brought Surfin\u2019 Bitcoin to the South of France to decentralize the event away from Paris. Over the past few years, Surfin\u2019 Bitcoin has grown from a few hundred attendees to about 2,000. <\/p>\n There were just over one hundred speakers at the conference. About 35% of them came from abroad, mostly European countries. For the first time the event included English content, with around 45 scheduled English speakers, and around 50 who spoke in French.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n The first day of the conference was free, drawing in early conference attendees and tourists from the beach, some of whom experienced their first touch-point with Bitcoin, together viewing the French documentary Le Myst\u00e8re Satoshi<\/a>, by Remi Forte.<\/p>\n The conference hosted several debates\u2014for example, Austrian economics vs Keynesian economics and crypto venture capitalists vs Bitcoin venture capitalists\u2014in an attempt to stir up controversy, but also to win over crypto curious attendees with the Bitcoin maximalist point of view.<\/p>\n The main stage French presentations were packed throughout the conference, and what many of the English panels and workshops lacked in attendance they gained in interactivity between the audience and the speakers. <\/p>\n One Norwegian speaker even opted to come into the audience to do impromptu small group discussion of how best to defend Bitcoin mining from the often disingenuous environmental, social and governance (ESG) arguments against it. <\/p>\n The strength of Bitcoiners is that they are motivated whatever the situation, and that\u2019s a strength altcoiners don\u2019t have, Tonnellier noted.<\/p>\n \u201cIf the price is going up, I\u2019m happy. If the price is going down, I\u2019m happy because I accumulate more Bitcoin on the cheap. My clients understand that at StackingSat,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n Tonnellier mentioned the recent failures of LUNA and Celsius<\/a>, commenting that \u201cwe\u2019re very sad by all the people that were wrecked by it, but it\u2019s a way to clean the ecosystem of the actors who are not doing business in a proper way.\u201d<\/p>\n He continued, \u201cAll the lending and defi stuff is quite dangerous, and can collapse very easily.\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Bitcoin is thriving. \u201cBitcoin has faced many adversities throughout its life, and each time it comes out stronger,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n The media in France hasn\u2019t been too positive about Bitcoin, and Tonnellier noted the regulatory hurdles of launching both StackingSat and the conference. He hoped the conference itself will provide a positive Bitcoin touchpoint for the local Basque community.<\/p>\n The main downside to the Surfin\u2019 Bitcoin conference was also its greatest virtue, the location. <\/p>\n The casino is beautiful. Light floods in from the two-story windows overlooking an expansive, sunny promenade, La Grande Plage. The busy beach is buffered by cliffs, swarms of swimmers in the rolling Atlantic and pods of surfers in the morning and late afternoon.<\/p>\n The allure of Basque country is so strong that many foreign attendees remarked on how hard it was to sit through full days worth of Bitcoin programming.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n To the Southwest, attendees could see the mountains and lights of Spain. To the Northeast, the lighthouse on the cliffs and the luxurious H\u00f4tel du Palais, a former imperial vacation villa built for Napoleon III.<\/p>\n Up and down the coast as far as one can see, an eclectic mix of architecture winds through the 12th century whaling port, with its endless roughcast villas, the gray stone of Bidache, the red stone of the Rhune, lining Biarritz\u2019s alleys, bridges and staircases climbing the hills.<\/p>\n When walking between stages, down the exhibition hall, or taking lunch on the expansive casino roof, dotted with French conference attendees smoking cigarettes and chatting, you could see hundreds of people lying in the sun, up and down the coast, dozens tumbling in the waves.<\/p>\n Tonnellier\u2019s goal was to educate people on Bitcoin in a relaxed environment by the beach, rather than host a \u201cbowtie conference in Paris.\u201d<\/p>\n Indeed, on the rooftop of Casino Barri\u00e8re Biarritz, just a stone\u2019s throw from the beach, over 1,000 Bitcoiners gathered at sunset, casually eating, drinking and networking. <\/p>\n Some danced as the DJ played on the closing night of the conference, most clustered in groups, chattering about Bitcoin and legacy finance until 4:00 a.m., when many then returned to their beachside hotels, or then parted to go clubbing together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n There seemed to be little small talk among enthusiastic Bitcoiners in Biarritz, many of whom have aligned philosophies, principles and lucid hyperbitcoinized visions for the world\u2019s financial future.<\/p>\n Pierre Rochard<\/a>, VP of research at Riot Blockchain, moved away from France at a young age. He opted to speak in English at this year\u2019s Surfing\u2019 Bitcoin Conference. <\/p>\n Pierre attended his first Bitcoin conference in New York in 2013, where he met Suhas Daftuar. The connection later led to a Bitcoin job at Chaincode Labs. <\/p>\n At the time, during the 2012\u20132013 Cypriot financial crisis, Pierre recalls the sentiment among Bitcoiners on Reddit was that the bank run in Cyprus would trigger mass Bitcoin adoption.<\/p>\n The belief among Bitcoiners draws parallels to this day, where the network\u2019s adoption is often assumed to be inversely proportional to the unethical behavior of central banks, and global state theft via inflation and taxes. <\/p>\n \u201cYou can\u2019t really just foist Bitcoin onto the general public, and expect them to be interested,\u201d Pierre remarked. <\/p>\n He went on to explain that the general public views Bitcoin as just a brand among crypto brands, in part due to the misleading advertising of the large crypto exchanges. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n \u201cBitcoin\u2019s node software is strictly superior to Dogecoin\u2019s node software, for example, and the brand is just very far downstream from that fact,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n Pierre recalls losing interest in Bitcoin during the 2014-2015 bear market. \u201cI certainly didn\u2019t rage quit or lose confidence in Bitcoin. I started focusing on building my own quadcopter drone instead.\u201d <\/p>\n In 2015, when the price of Bitcoin was around $300 dollars, Pierre recalled a tongue-in-cheek conversation with Michael Goldstein. \u201cWe should just keep the Nakamoto Institute website up, even if Bitcoin doesn\u2019t become a thing, as a historical artifact.\u201d <\/p>\n Today, Pierre\u2019s wife Morgen Rochard runs a financial planning practice, where she has succeeded in helping 90% of her clients get exposure to Bitcoin. \u201cMost of them also hold their own private keys,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Pierre sees the perfect audience for Bitcoin conferences as the curious-to-casual Bitcoiners who are looking to further educate themselves.<\/p>\n In 2018 Pierre attended Consensus, where, at a satellite event put on by The Block, he was invited to speak on Bitcoin maximalism. At that event he met the team of his current employer, Riot Blockchain. <\/p>\n\n Pierre considers the challenge of conferences to be striking a content balance between pop-culture Bitcoin and open-source Bitcoin audiences. <\/p>\n\n\n\n An engaging balance was struck in Biarritz, with entire stages dedicated to expert-level Bitcoin content and technical workshops, and several controversial debates between professional Bitcoiners and altcoiners. <\/p>\n Prince Philip Karageorgevitch first encountered Bitcoin in the run up to $100 dollars in 2013. He first bought bitcoin in 2017 and held it through the bear market, buying regularly.<\/p>\n The prince began to learn more about Bitcoin in response to global government overreach during the covid pandemic. \u201cThat\u2019s when I realized there\u2019s something not right with this world.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m a Bitcoin maxi,\u201d he stated. \u201cEventually I will probably be working in Bitcoin.\u201d<\/p>\n At the conference Prince Philip delivered a keynote on why he is bullish on Bitcoin and also moderated a panel on the future perspective of Bitcoin and crypto markets.<\/p>\n He believes the benefit of Bitcoin conferences is that the crypto curious might educate themselves and become maximalists.<\/p>\n\n \u201cAltcoiners also know there\u2019s something wrong with the world, but they don\u2019t know what it is really. They understand that money corrupts, but they don\u2019t understand their money is corrupt,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Prince Philip explained how Bitcoin is the only ethical alternative to the fiat system, a maximalist position with which many crypto enthusiasts don\u2019t agree.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople aren\u2019t taught about what money is really. They don\u2019t understand how the wars of history are funded,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Indeed, many of those who neglect Bitcoin as a form of self-sovereign savings have left the market, and it remains to be seen how far below $20,000 bitcoin speculators, whales and noobs will send the price. <\/p>\n The common strategy among the French conference goers was to just buy and hodl Bitcoin, though many also spoke of small allocation, speculative derivative plays. Despite the bear market, there is no shortage of Bitcoin conferences in the coming months. <\/p>\n \u201cThis bear market is great because it sorts out those who really care about Bitcoin from those who are just here for fiat gains.\u201d<\/p>\n Prince Philip commented that the crypto sponsorships and speaker slots that often accompany Bitcoin conferences are a good opportunity to educate people on Bitcoin maximalism. <\/p>\n\n \u201cRight now nation states are considering Bitcoin,\u201d he argued. \u201cThey have to because it\u2019s a threat. If it\u2019s a threat they have to have an insurance hedge against Bitcoin. The only insurance hedge against Bitcoin is to buy Bitcoin.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n The IMF and World Bank won\u2019t admit it, but tourism increases in countries and cities that are friendly to Bitcoin. The greatest example of this is El Salvador, where tourism increased 82.8%<\/a> in the first half of 2022, in part due to the influx of thousands of visiting Bitcoiners.<\/p>\n This is evident at Biarritz as well, where over the course of three days, thousands of Bitcoiners descended on the sunny Basque city, packing its hotels, beaches, clubs, tapas bars and restaurants. <\/p>\n Prince Philip remarked that in Serbia, however, the populace mistrusts governments, and is skeptical of outside powers, viewing Bitcoin as too good to be true. The country has gone through multiple wars in the past 90 years, experiencing the third highest hyperinflation in the world during the 1990\u2019s.<\/p>\n Prince Philip concluded that with education, Serbians will understand how Bitcoin adoption empowers them to take control of their own money.<\/p>\n Charles Guillemet<\/a>, CTO at French cryptocurrency hardware wallet company Ledger, has a background in cryptography and security. He joined the firm in 2017. <\/p>\n\n According to Guillemet, Ledger currently has over 800 employees and is the largest crypto hardware wallet provider on the planet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When I asked Guillemet whether he was a Bitcoiner, he hesitated. \u201cDefinitely I think Bitcoin is king. It has a unique value proposition in the ecosystem.\u201d <\/p>\n Guillemet believes Ethereum also has a unique value proposition, \u201cwhich can be respected as well.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWith Ethereum there are plenty of technical challenges, and maybe a more efficient blockchain could take its place,\u201d he conceded.<\/p>\n We agreed that Guillemet is a Bitcoiner, but not a Bitcoin maximalist. <\/p>\n I asked Guillemet whether he preferred Bitcoin or crypto conferences. He replied, \u201cAt Ledger we don\u2019t have a religion. We are providing security tools for users to get onboarded. We have different trends.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cWhat\u2019s important for us is the seriousness of the project,\u201d Guillemet said. I asked him how he qualified that. \u201cIt\u2019s difficult. Does the project pass the test of time? Scammy projects don\u2019t pass the test of time often. An ecosystem of developers is a good sign.\u201d <\/p>\n Minutes later, Guillemet said that Ledger is looking to further platformize their product, so that \u201cevery single chain can be implemented within the device.\u201d<\/p>\n\n In terms of Bitcoin developments at Ledger, Guillemet said that they will soon release the ability to run your own full node. Ledger is also working to integrate Tor to protect users\u2019 privacy and release a Bitcoin credit card, to which users will be able to send Bitcoin as collateral for fiat credit. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Guillemet commented that conferences are good for exchanging ideas. \u201cBitcoin is a crossing point for technology, economics, and geopolitics. If you don\u2019t get that, you don\u2019t understand Bitcoin.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a paradigm shift. It\u2019s not easy to understand Bitcoin when you come from the fiat monetary system,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n In the event of a hardware wallet know-your-customer (KYC) regulatory crackdown in Europe, Guillemet commented that Ledger would have no choice but to comply. Nonetheless, he wants to ensure the current Ledger users are self sovereign. <\/p>\n He concluded, \u201cFor me what is apparent in Bitcoin and cryptocurrency is that if you don\u2019t self custody, there\u2019s no point.\u201d <\/p>\n John Carvalho<\/a> is the founder and CEO of Synonym<\/a>, which develops an ecosystem of applications and protocols for a future hyperbitcoinized world. <\/p>\n\n Carvalho is a self proclaimed toxic Bitcoin maximalist, meaning he doesn\u2019t believe blockchains outside of Bitcoin are necessary or ethical forms of money. He is also skeptical of attempts to expand the idea of the Lightning Network outside of any non-payment use cases.<\/p>\n When I asked Carvalho how his business accounted for a multichain future, his response was, \u201cBy ignoring it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe only people who care about a multichain world are people who are trying to sell you their chain,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Carvalho first bought Bitcoin in 2012 and attended his first conference in early 2013. \u201cI was basically a full time Bitcoiner two months after getting some.\u201d Over the next few months he plans to attend four Bitcoin conferences. <\/p>\n To be sure, Carvalho is an opinionated, but rational Bitcoiner. In reference to the Bitcoin Conference<\/a>\u2019s invitation to have him debate Eric Wall<\/a> in Amsterdam, he commented, \u201cBitcoin debates should seek truth, not drama.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cYou can\u2019t refute FUD [fear, uncertainty, and doubt]. You can try to rationalize with it, but they will keep changing the angle.\u201d<\/p>\n Imagining his debate with Wall, Carvalho riffed, \u201cYou cannot innovate on Bitcoin in a way that compromises censorship resistance. Every shitcoin does that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n \u201cIf the prerequisite for me taking you seriously is I have to accept a censorable blockchain, then the argument is over for me,\u201d he added. <\/p>\nJosselin Tonnellier<\/h2>\n
Pierre Rochard<\/h2>\n
Prince Philip Karageorgevitch of Serbia <\/h2>\n
Charles Guillemet<\/h2>\n
John Carvalho<\/h2>\n