Cryptocurrency is the newest major asset class to emerge in the 21st century. Most famous is Bitcoin, but the crypto markets now include several thousand digital currencies and tokens. These tokens are used for all kinds of purposes, but the ones used as digital money are still the most popular. Among the top 10 cryptocurrencies trading today, 4 (Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, Ripple…or 6 six if you count Tether and Binance Coin) are primarily as digital forms of cash.
However, none of these digital assets has a foundation of inherent value. Sure, the law of supply and demand ensures that these cryptocurrencies have value as long as people use them, but there’s nothing built into these technologies that makes them reliable stores of value.
This has led a whole new generation of asset-backed-cryptocurrencies to enter the stage. Coins like these will theoretically always hold their value, as long as they continue to be backed by real world assets that retain value. A number of different asset-backing types have been used since these so-called “stablecoins” first emerged, but none is so interesting or promising as gold.
Gold can sound downright out of place when it comes to cryptocurrency. After all, this is an ancient asset that seems out of step with the internet age. But a coin called KaratGold Coin (KBC) has found a remarkable way of unifying gold with this newest kind of asset.
KaratGold Coin wasn’t the first cryptocurrency to be linked to gold. But it is the first cryptocurrency to be 100% tradable for gold (in the form of CashGold – more on this later). The company that introduced KaratGold Coin to the market in the first place, Karatbars International, has introduced a remarkable array of products and services that are transforming the very notion of gold ownership in the 21st century.
Take, for example, the K-Merchant app. K-merchant allows users to transact with KBC in all kinds of ways. The can buy it with Bitcoin, Ethereum, or fiat currencies, or sell it for the same. They can also spend KBC for goods and services with thousands of online retailers. This essentially means that gold is now spendable online, because KBC ownership and gold ownership are now equivalent.
This last point is true because of the possibility of exchange. Starting July 4, 2019, KBC will be swappable for gold in the form of CashGold notes (at participating ATMs). CashGold notes a paper bills that resemble normal fiat bills in style and form. The difference is that CashGold notes hold a tiny bar of gold, weighed at just 0.1 grams. The gold confers value upon the note.
KBC prices are tethered to the value of specific quantities of CashGold. This means that users can own gold without having to possess it. They can also transfer the ownership of this gold by spending KBC online. KBC also pays for services on the new IMPulse K1 smartphone. With the IMpulse K1 Phone that complements the Karatbars’ infrastructure, calls and text messages will not be transmitted through conventional ways, but instead, they are encrypted and broadcasted by a newly created Voice Over Blockchain Protocol (VOBP). As a result, there’s no need to worry about third parties monitoring user’s actions, as the VOBP uses peer-to-peer encryption that cannot be hacked or manipulated in the current state of the art. Linked to the phone, Karatbars presents a clear utility of Karatgold Coin being that KBC serves as a credit for phone calls.
All told, this diverse set of products and services changes the way it’s possible to use gold, and a new class of investors is reconsidering gold for a place in their (virtual) portfolios.
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