Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Work smarter with a Pro licence Learn More

Gordon Campbell | Parliament TV | Parliament Today | News Video | Crime | Employers | Housing | Immigration | Legal | Local Govt. | Maori | Welfare | Unions | Youth | Search

 

Digital Currency on the Drawing Board

MEDIA RELEASE

August 22, 2014

Digital Currency on the Drawing Board

Government policies and digital currency ideas and issues will come together at three public workshops next week.

The workshops in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, sponsored by the Internet Party, will be facilitated by Robert O’Brien, a software engineer who has worked on large-scale distributed financial market systems and one of New Zealand's leading authorities on Blockchain technology.

The aim of the workshops is to canvass views on policy and regulation as it relates to financial technology, specifically Bitcoin and Blockchain technology. The focus is to kickstart the conversation and get people thinking about the implications and use of the technology from a policy perspective, as well as new ways to deliver government services online.

While the Internet Party is organising the workshops as sponsor, the meetings are politically neutral and Mr O'Brien is volunteering his time for free.

Internet Party digital currency spokesman David Currin said gathering relevant views and expertise was critical to forming strong and effective policy in the increasingly important area of crypto-currency.

“The Internet Party has a major focus on the development of digital currency in a policy context. It’s an important emerging technology for the future of finance and New Zealand, and there are huge opportunities for us to get in on the ground floor and establish ourselves as a key player.

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

Are you getting our free newsletter?

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.

“At the moment it’s a little like the Wild West – unexplored and unregulated but with huge opportunities for early pioneers. Digital currency is the new frontier. The underlying infrastructure, called the blockchain, has many potential uses beyond crypto-currencies which opens up new possibilities for Government.”

DIGITAL CURRENCY WORKSHOPS

Auckland

August 26
Freeman’s Bay Community Centre, 52 Hepburn St
4pm-6pm
http://www.meetup.com/Auckland-Bitcoin-Meetup/events/201179342/

Christchurch

August 28
Canterbury University, Room KA04 Kirkwood Village, Kirkwood Ave
3pm-5pm
http://www.meetup.com/Crypto-currency-and-Blockchain-Policy/events/201549052/

Wellington

August 29
Toi Poneke Arts Centre, 61-69 Abel Smith St
12pm-2pm
http://www.meetup.com/Wellington-Bitcoin/events/201080202/

ENDS


© Scoop Media

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
 
 
 
Parliament Headlines | Politics Headlines | Regional Headlines


Gordon Campbell: On The US Opposition To Mortgage Interest Deductibility For Landlords


Should landlords be able to deduct the interest on the loans they take out to bankroll their property speculation? The US Senate Budget Committee and Bloomberg News don't think this is a good idea, for reasons set out below. Regardless, our coalition government has been burning through a ton of political capital by giving landlords a huge $2.9 billion tax break via interest deductibility, while still preaching the need for austerity to the disabled, and to everyone else...
More


 
 

Government: Concerns Conveyed To China Over Cyber Activity
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity... More

ALSO:


Government: GDP Decline Reinforces Government’s Fiscal Plan

Declining GDP for the December quarter reinforces the importance of restoring fiscal discipline to public spending and driving more economic growth, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says... More

ALSO:


Government: Humanitarian Support For Gaza & West Bank

Winston Peters has announced NZ is providing a further $5M to respond to the extreme humanitarian need in Gaza and the West Bank. “The impact of the Israel-Hamas conflict on civilians is absolutely appalling," he said... More


Government: New High Court Judge Appointed

Judith Collins has announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister Jason Scott McHerron as a High Court Judge. Justice McHerron graduated from the University of Otago with a BA in English Literature in 1994 and an LLB in 1996... More

 
 
 
 
 
 

LATEST HEADLINES

  • PARLIAMENT
  • POLITICS
  • REGIONAL
 
 

InfoPages News Channels


 
 
 
 

Join Our Free Newsletter

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.