An interview with Evgeny Skigin de Bitclear

The co -founder of Bitclear, Evgeny Skigin, shares ideas about regulation, innovation and the future of decentralized finances.

In 2018, Forbes published its first classification of the richest cryptographic headlines in the world. But four years before, the investor and businessman, Mr. Evgeny Skigin, had already created a unique software solution for payment systems, becoming a pioneer in a niche that nobody knew it existed.

Since then, cryptographic and blockchain space has evolved quickly, with an increase in decentralized protocols and web services. Today, even the main corporations, banks and governments are competing to develop their own digital currencies.

We talk to Mr. Evgeny Skigin, Bitclear shareholder, about the speed of cryptographic market development and if the world is really ready to adopt Bitcoin as a global reserve coin.

Evgeny, let’s start with his current role in Bitclear. What is your position today, 11 years after the project was launched?

Until 2020, I worked as the company’s CEO. Today we have a new CEO, and I am the only shareholder after buying my partner’s participation.

So initially you launched bitcar with a partner?

Yes, he had experience in payment systems, which was crucial to help us build the central software.

Do you remember the moment when you came up with the business idea: when you realized that this would become more than an exchange of cryptography?

Absolutely. It was in 2014, and almost no one knew what Bitcoin was, much less how it would transform global financial systems. My investor instinct told me that this was the time to act. That was when we started.

What was the original concept behind Bitclear?

We created software that allowed Bitcoin to function as an independent payment system. Let’s say it is in an electronic commerce site buying socks for $ 2, I would normally see Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Paypal. We add bitcoin as a payment option. That is still the basis of our service today.

Then did software developed for markets and online stores?

It is not exactly for them directly, but for aggregators, payment services providers that integrate systems for companies. We sell our product to these suppliers, allowing them to offer cryptography payments to their customers.

How has the product evolved in the last 11 years?

At first, it was experimental. Users were not familiar with cryptographic payments and were not ready to trust them. And we had no idea how to sell it. Blockchain was in his childhood: he would have to manually enter the code into a terminal to execute a transaction. Very rudimentary. But we learned a lot. Initially, we only support Bitcoin. Now, we can integrate virtually any cryptocurrency requested by a client.

Many new companies face challenges with licenses and legal configuration. How did you navigate bitclaar that?

We started in Denmark, then we moved to Malta with the hope of a more favorable legal framework, but it was even more complex. Finally, we move to Liechtenstein, which has some of the most advanced cryptographic regulations. There, we obtained licenses for both the encryption trade and for the broader commercial operations.

So Bitclear works completely legally?

Absolutely. For 2018, it was clear to me that serious players would only enter space once there was a well -defined regulatory framework. Without regulation, the market would resort to speculation and collapse.

Have you been involved in the configuration of cryptographic regulations?

I work with a group of experts in regulatory committees. We help legislators understand what allows blockchain and where protection is necessary. According to that, the regulations are written.

Over time, you must have seen both strengths and cryptography limitations. Would Bitcoin call the best form of money today and a replacement potential for the dollar?

It depends on how we define money. From a technological point of view, Bitcoin, or to be even more precise, the block chain, is the most effective tool ever created to store and transfer value. But as a currency, as of today, it lacks the required stability: its volatility is too extreme.

Stablecoins are a step forward, linked to fiduciary currencies and offering more predictability. Some are even backed by Gold, which is also an interesting model: digital transactions backed by physical assets.

So is Crypto forming his own financial ecosystem?

Yes. Crypto advanced to his time: satisfying the need for individual financial freedom: storage, transfer and control of one’s money. Now we are entering a critical moment for cryptography.

Banks are hardening restrictions, which makes it difficult to remove or deposit effective, and analyze each transaction. While monitoring is necessary to prevent terrorism and money laundering, the arbitrary bank freezes individual rights and companies. In contrast, cryptography allows minor global trade. What we need is an open financial system that promotes innovation.

As an investor, did you immediately see where the market was directed?

Interestingly, at the time I launched Bitclear, I was also building a traditional business in the agricultural sector: real production, logistics, supply chains. You see movement and volume in real time. Meanwhile, in Crypto, it’s just a laptop: you build a product, connect with a customer and you can sleep while your system earns income during the night. It is a bit scary the easiest thing that is digital scalar about physical.

Many new companies today are launching their own tokens. What is your opinion about this trend?

First, let’s clarify. Coins are based on their own block chains (for example, BTC, ETH, XRP, Sun), while tokens are based on existing platforms and offer functionality: voting rights, access to membership, governance and more. They do not always carry intrinsic monetary value. While many companies explore tokens, we don’t see that as an address for our business.

Do you plan to make public through IPO?

No, that is not in our plans. ICO (initial coins offers) differ from opi. OPIs involve regulated values ​​and offer investor protections. ICOs, on the other hand, are often not regulated and are open to abuse. That lack of supervision attracts bad actors, so it is risky for users. We do not support that model.

Looking to the future of 2 to 3 years, how do you see the evolution of bitclear? Will product functionality expand?

Definitely. Initially, our model attended to funds and individuals seeking passive income through cryptography under trust management. Now, we are entering the B2C market in Central America with a white label infrastructure solution: companies can use our technology under their own brand, while we administer the backend.

Will customers participate in the operating side?

Yes. We are developing a mobile application that allows monitoring and transactions in real time from anywhere. Soon an MVP will be launched so that users can test the interface and the characteristics. We are also working on a bitclear payment card, similar to the visa, which will allow users to pay with crypto anywhere.

Are cryptographic cards already available?

They are, but the existing ones are still quite raw and are not widely usable. We already had the idea in 2020. However, we decided to postpone the project due to capacity restrictions.

Will you be expanding your team? You are currently positioned as a boutique company, right?

Exactly. After executing a large -scale agribusiness with great staff and complex logistics, I now prefer a thin team. We are only 10 people: developers, legal, operations. That is enough for us right now.

Is your team international?

Our developers work remotely from Poland and Spain. Many of them have never met in person. Poland has an excellent university for software engineering, by the way. We strive to seek talent no matter where it comes from. Being in it makes this possible.

Have the salaries of developers increased with demand?

Absolutely. Technological giants are strongly investing in the launch of their own cryptocurrencies and need upper blockchain talent. The salaries of Blockchain engineers now rival those of IA specialists.

With all this corporate interest, where does the market go?

More and more people want to deliver their cryptography assets to professionals, but without giving up custody. Transparency is key, especially after many people have been victims of fraud. That is why regulation and security are fundamental for the future of this market and why we have focused on building a company that is reliable, competent but agile and flexible.