Monde PR report for December 2022

Decred ended the year with renewed optimism and considerable opportunities for project growth.

In late December, Decred launched its much anticipated secret project, the community was not disappointed. As far as disruptive technologies goes, it doesn’t get more disrupting than building out a sovereign internet and social media platform with a built-in payment system that is fast, cheap, and reliable.

The Decred messaging continues to focus on its decentralised, self-custodial and censorship resistant products and solutions. For this purpose, Monde PR has participated in numerous communications including pitching eight commentary ops, Securing a media interview and pitching a news update. They have also secured the following news articles:

Expert panel: what mistakes should users avoid when attempting to buy cryptocurrencies

An article in CoinJournal featuring commentary from jy-p on mistakes to avoid when buying cryptocurrencies.

Expert panel response to mistakes to avoid when buying cryptocurrencies
Mistakes to avoid when buying cryptocurrencies

Extract from the article:
The year 2022 has exposed a lot of overvalued investments as the economy has flipped and capital has flowed out of the space. Many investors are hurting bad, so perhaps it is a good time to take stock of errors and see whether these can be avoided in future.

Avoid buying a large amount of cryptocurrency all at one time and price, it is best to dollar cost average and gradually buy and sell cryptoassets.

Since cryptocurrency markets are highly volatile relative to typical fiat financial markets, managing the psychological strain that comes with this volatility is important. If prices drop, your cost-averaged price tracks it downwards, reducing psychological strain.

Use a hardware wallet, e.g. Trezor or Ledger, and withdraw your purchased cryptoassets from the exchange.  You can easily redeposit the assets at an exchange if/when you are ready to sell.

If an exchange gets hacked and its assets are stolen, this will not affect your withdrawn self-custodied assets.  Remember “not your keys, not your coins”.


Expert panel: what is your biggest tip for a user just getting into crypto?

An article in CoinJournal featuring commentary from jy-p on tips for those just getting into crypto.

We interview leading experts to ask their biggest tip for a user just getting into crypto?
Advice for for new investors getting into crypto

Extract from the article:
Only a few years ago, crypto was still a niche and enigmatic concept to most, yet today it is firmly in the mainstream.

Today we are in a completely different financial landscape, with the world economy reeling, inflation high and a wealth of uncertainty present. For new investors, therefore, it is perhaps an even more intimidating time than usual to get into cryptocurrency.

What is your biggest tip for a user just getting into crypto?

Avoid letting hype and a false sense of urgency drive your decisions.Take your time, do your own research, and try to understand what you’re investing in before you buy it.

Cryptocurrency has many nuances and is substantially different than investing in fiat-based financial instruments.  If a project was a good purchase a week ago, it will still be a good purchase a few weeks later. Fads come and go, but fundamentals do not.


Expert panel: what are the 3 most important things to look out for when choosing a crypto platform to sign up to?

An article in CoinJournal featuring commentary from jy-p on how to choose a crypto platform.

important things to look out for when opening a crypto platform.
Top tips from experts to know before opening a crypto platform.

Extract from the article:
Against this backdrop, it has never been more important to choose your crypto platform wisely. On this note, we sat down with a few industry experts to get their thoughts. What are the 3 most important things to look out for when choosing a crypto platform to sign up to?

The first step is to choose a reputable exchange that supports the right fiat currencies, cryptocurrencies, and customer jurisdictions. Many exchanges only support particular fiat currencies, cryptocurrencies, and customer jurisdictions.

Spend time doing your own independent research to find a well-known and well-reviewed exchange that fits your needs. As this is becoming an increasingly common problem, make certain the exchange supports deposits and withdrawals in your cryptocurrencies of choice and not just deposits.

Some exchanges only allow deposits and not withdrawals in a given cryptocurrency, and some do not allow either deposits or withdrawals in a given cryptocurrency. The last thing to look out for is being patient. The account registration process at most cryptocurrency exchanges that process fiat can take several days or weeks to complete in a worst-case scenario.

Be prepared to submit information similar to what you would submit to open a bank account and for it to take time to verify that information.  If you are registering an account during a bull market, account registration delays can be significant.


Today in Crypto: Decred Launches Social Media

A piece in Cryptonews about the launch of Bison Relay.

Today in Crypto: Decred Launches Social Media & Messaging Platform, Opera Announces a Suite of Security Features, T-Systems MMS Participates in Chainlink Staking
Get your daily, bite-sized digest of cryptoasset and blockchain-related news – investigating the stories flying under the radar of today’s crypto news.

Extract from the article:
Decred (DCR) announced the launch of Bison Relay, described as a “private, censorship-resistant social media and messaging platform that gives users custody over their data.” Per the announcement, the platform offers "zero knowledge communications" with end-to-end encryption, server operators can’t see what users share or which chats they participate in, and users can monetize their content using the built-in Lightning Network.


Decred launches new social media platform Bison Relay

An article in Invezz about the launch of Bison Relay

Decred launches new social media platform Bison Relay | Invezz
Decred (DCR/USD) has launched a new peer-to-peer social media and messaging platform dubbed Bison Relay. In an announcement shared with Invezz, Decred said Bison Relay is a secure, private, and censorship-resistant platform where users will have custody over their personal data. The project is Decre…

Extract from the article:
The web is broken and in desperate need of a reboot. The root of the problem is that the web and social media platforms are fundamentally custodial networks. When people have custody of your data, content, and metadata, they can record, sell or even manipulate it. Instead of arguing about who the custodian should be, the solution is to remove or minimise that custody.


My Chat with Decred Founder/CEO Jake

jy-p was interviewed by the Piece of the Py show discussing the launch of Bison Relay, Decred’s use in the 2022 Brazil elections and the launch of DCRDEX v0.5.


Focus on Decentralization and Empower Users in 2023, Says Industry

An article in BeInCrypto featuring commentary from jz about focusing on decentralization in 2023, with a DCRDEX mention.

https://beincrypto.com/focus-on-decentralization-and-empower-users-in-2023-says-industry/

Extract from the article:
2022 has been the most dramatic year for crypto to date. 2021 ended with a frenzy of excitement, with BTC reaching its ATH only weeks before. 2022 was going to be about consolidating wins, furthering adoption, and cementing the industry’s place in the mainstream.

As we know now, things turned out a little differently. To get a temperature check on the industry, BeInCrypto spoke to nearly 50 industry members to get a glimpse of crypto in 2023.

Decentralize Now!
That opaqueness poisons the well for the entire industry and forms a roadblock to adoption. What bad actors like Sam Bankman-Fried have done is put a crypto spin on traditional scams, says Jonathan Zeppettini, Strategy Lead at Decred. “In many cases, using cryptocurrencies as intended would protect users from exposure to these negative outcomes,” he says. “Unfortunately, complacency and greed often get the best of people.”

But, the solutions are already there and ready to use, and that includes self-custody of funds. According to multiple respondents, they simply need promotion and adoption. “I’d like to see more of an emphasis on tooling that empowers users to disintermediate and obviate the need for various middlemen…Decentralized exchanges such as Uniswap and DCRDEX can mostly replace traditional centralized exchanges and prevent another FTX incident from even being possible.”

The risk of centralized exchanges was demonstrated over a decade ago with the Mt Gox hacks. By early 2014, the exchange was handling over 70% of all bitcoin transactions. However, the early giant of crypto imploded after a series of intrusions, losing hundreds of thousands of bitcoins, then worth hundreds of millions in USD. 2022 has forced us to learn the same lessons