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Karsten Wenzlaff, Advisor
August 26th, 2025
Karsten Wenzlaff is a Crowdfunding and Fintech Expert from Germany. He is Secretary-General of Digit[...]
Category Archives: Digital Identity, Privacy, KYC, AML/ATF
FFCON20 DIGITAL Attendees to Receive Exclusive Digital Icon and Early Access to Liquid Avatar
NCFA and FFCON20 | Release | July 8, 2020
TORONTO — July 8, 2020 — The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA), Toronto Finance International (TFI), and partners are pleased to announce that together with their sponsor, KABN Systems North America Inc. (“KABN”), attendees of FFCON20 DIGITAL, taking place from July 9 through August 27 inclusive, will receive an exclusive Liquid Avatar FFCON 20 iconic digital pin to celebrate their attendance at the event.
The FFCON20 digital pin is the first event pin offered by Liquid Avatar (www.liquidavatar.com) in support of its new app to power users to verify, manage and monetize their digital identity.
Liquid Avatar, a KABN product offering, provides users with the ability to verify, manage and control their digital identity through an easy to use app or web page. Using high quality icons, users can create their digital identity and verify themselves using KABN’s bank grade validation process and biometrics, supported by Blockchain technologies.
“We’re honored to be able to present our first Liquid Avatar event pin at FFCON 20 DIGITAL,” said Mr. Ben Kessler, CEO – KABN. “Liquid Avatar gives users control over the use of their digital identity and data providing them with the ability to share what they want, when they want and with whom they want, easily and efficiently, while protecting the use of their digital assets.”
Liquid Avatar creates a re-usable, always on, verified digital identity that can be used, together with the app’s “wallet” and “keyrings” for current and future digital credentials and to manage private and public data. Liquid Avatar is built to support a wide range of digital credentials, wallets and authentication processes, creating a potentially agnostic authenticated storage environment for the user.
“We’re very excited to work with the KABN team to provide attendees with the inaugural Liquid Avatar event pin with potential future value offerings from NCFA and its partners, and to commemorate FFCON20 DIGITAL, and what a transformative year 2020 has been for the digital economy and those on the RISE,” said Craig Asano, Founder and CEO – NCFA Canada. “Users will be able to claim their digital pin and gain early access to the Liquid Avatar app.”
KABN will be presenting Digital Identity and Convergence Marketplaces, as part of the FFCON20 DIGITAL programme on Thursday, August 6, 2020 at 2 pm Eastern. Attendees of that event will get additional Liquid Avatar rewards.
See: Get tickets to FFCON20: DIGITAL RISE July 9 - August 27
Now in its 6th year, FFCON20 will be an online experience bringing together prominent industry experts, entrepreneurs, professionals, regulatory bodies and ecosystem stakeholders in fintech, digital identity, blockchain, crypto, AI, capital markets innovation and alternative finance to discuss innovation and Canada’s ability to compete and scale globally, the latest industry developments and emerging trends, regulation and thought leadership.
The theme of this year’s conference is ‘RISE’ reflecting the joint efforts of the two associations, NCFA and TFI, to build and increase the success and sustainability of Canada’s fintech and financial sector.
The Programme
Tickets include access to all eight weeks of FFCON20 DIGITAL
- July 09: FFCON20 Kickoff | Scaling FinTech Funding, Innovation & Competition
- July 16: Digital Banking, Open X, Future of PayTech
- July 23: Sustainable Finance
- July 30: Leadership & Adaptability
- August 06: Digital Identity and Convergence Marketplaces
- August 13: Currency Wars & The Rise of DeFi
- August 20: Ai in FinTech: biased and in need of regulation?
- August 27: The Biggest Debates in Fintech and Fintech Draft Finals | Official Close of FFCON20
The agenda can be accessed on the programme page.
Our Partners and Speakers
Some notable companies involved include: Exponential, KABN NA, Mavennet, The Finanser, eThereLive, The Top Floor, EQbank, CACHEFLO, Consilium Crypto, DUCA Impact Lab, Deloitte, FundRazr, Holt Accelerator, Lending Loop, Metaverse Foundation, Ledn, Portag3 Ventures, Senate of Canada, LQwD Financial Corp., Accenture, Clearbanc, Bitvo, Singularity Media, Northmark Ventures, Luge Capital, Crowdfund Capital Advisors, Engaiz, Finnovate.io, Senso, FundRazr, Brainfluence, Foxquiilt and Zensurance. The growing list of speakers can be found at the conference speaker page.
Registration Now Open
Registration for FFCON20 DIGITAL is open and tickets are available to one or all 8 weeks in the FFCON20 DIGITAL weekly event series and can be purchased at https://fintechandfunding.com/tickets/.
Useful Links
FFCON20 banners | logos | images
Website | Experience | Partners
Registration | Media Pass
Connect with us
About the NCFA
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain and cryptocurrency, Regtech, and Insuretech sectors. To learn more about NCFA visit www.ncfacanada.org
About Toronto Finance International
Toronto Finance International (TFI) is a public-private partnership between Canada’s three levels of government, the financial services sector and academia. TFI’s mission is to lead collective action that drives the competitiveness and growth of Toronto’s financial sector and establishes its prominence as a leading international financial centre. For more information, please visit: www.tfi.ca
About KABN Systems North America Inc.
KABN Systems North America Inc. focuses on the verification, management and monetization of digital identity, empowering users to control and benefit from its use of their online identity. KABN propriety technology suite includes 4 key products:
KABN ID is an Always On, biometric and blockchain based digital identity validation and verification platform allowing users to continuously and confidently prove themselves throughout the online community.
Liquid Avatar allows users to create high quality digital icons representing their online personas. These icons, in conjunction with KABN ID, allows users to use Liquid Avatars to share public and permission based private data when they want and with whom they want. www.liquidavatar.com
KABN Card is a Visa approved prepaid card program allowing users to manage both digital and fiat currencies and earn cashback and other loyalty incentives.
KABN KASH is a cashback, loyalty and engagement program that powers the KABN revenue ecosystem.
KABN provides its products and services at no cost to consumers and generates revenues through permission-based partner programs.
KABN Systems North America Inc. is the operating division of KABN Systems NA Holdings Corp., a publicly traded on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the symbol: KABN
For more information, please visit www.kabnnaholdco.com or www.kabnsystemsna.com
About FFCON
FFCON20 (2020 Fintech and Financing Conference) is an annual conference hosted by Canada’s National Crowdfunding and Fintech Association (NCFA). Now in its sixth year, FFCON20, held in association with Toronto Finance International, will bring together professionals and innovators in fintech, open banking, digital identity, blockchain, cryptocurrency, AI, capital markets innovation, sustainable and alternative finance. Further information about the conference can be found at www.fintechandfunding.com
FFCON20 Contacts
Craig Asano
Founder and CEO, NCFA
casano@ncfacanada.org
(416) 618-0254
Partnership Inquiries
Lauren Linton
Advisor, NCFA
lauren@ncfacanada.org
(416) 569-4349
Media Contact
Michele McDermott-Fox
The Top Floor Public Relations
pr@thetopflooragency.com
(905) 379-1893
View the original release here
Liquid Avatar to Present at Apex Comic Group’s San Diego Comic-Con Virtual Panel
KABN North America | Ben Kessler | Jun 25, 2020
Liquid Avatar launches open call for emerging artists at world's largest comic book, fantasy and manga event
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - June 25, 2020) - KABN Systems NA Holdings Corp. (CSE: KABN) (the "Company" or "KABN" or "KABN North America"), a Canadian Fintech company that specializes in continuous online identity verification, management and monetization, is pleased to announce that its Liquid Avatar platform (www.liquidavatar.com) has partnered with Apex Comics Group (www.apexcomicsgroup.com) founder and publisher, Mariano Nicieza to present at this year's San Diego Comic-Con @Home event. The Apex Comics Group panel will take place on Saturday, July 25, 2020 at 5 pm Pacific Time / 8 pm Eastern Time.
San Diego Comic-Con is hailed as the largest attended event in San Diego annually with over 135,000 attendees in 2019 according to VisitSanDiego.com. This year's event, celebrating 51 years, will be held virtually for the first time, bringing the event to the world.
See: NCFA and KABN Systems North America enter multi-year exclusive partnership to promote Digital Identity in Canada
KABN's presentation during the Apex panel will focus on this week's earlier announcement launching Liquid Avatar's Creator program which is bringing some of the world's leading pop culture, comic book, fantasy, anime, manga and other iconic Artists together to create Illustrator and Signature series Liquid Avatars. There is also an open call for emerging Artists to join these programs and sell one of a kind, digital series and limited runs of custom Liquid Avatars. All custom Liquid Avatars will be available in the Liquid Avatar Marketplace launching in Q3 (www.liquidavatarmarketplace.com). A select group of emerging Artists will also be commissioned to create new, free Liquid Avatar icons available in the program's Creator Studio.
Liquid Avatars are high quality digital icons for personal or business use that emulate a user's digital "wallet" and "keyring" allowing them to manage and control their digital identity, credentials, and valuables. Powered by KABN ID with its biometrics, including facial recognition and other security features, Liquid Avatars can be shared with 3rd parties on a permission basis to verify identity without exposing any sensitive data. There is no cost for a consumer to create or manage their Liquid Avatar account and use the platform.
With the evolving macroenvironment driving an increased amount of time spent online, KABN believes that digital identity will become more important as users look to work, play, educate, game and shop virtually and will need to protect, manage and control the use of their digital identity.
Each custom Liquid Avatar, including the Illustrator and Signature series program, will also be supported by a Digital Certificate of Authenticity ("DCA"), based on blockchain technology developed by the KABN Network. DCAs allow for the issuance, recording, management and transfer of digital assets using IBM's Hyperledger Fabric.
"San Diego Comic-Con is a perfect place to showcase Liquid Avatars and we want to support the growing number of young, emerging artists and help them kickstart their career through the creation of custom Liquid Avatar icons," said Ben Kessler, CEO. "Our Liquid Avatar program is positioned to give people a wide range of choices on how they want to digitally present themselves as well as manage and control their digital identity, private and public data. Embracing the professional and emerging Artist community will provide unique opportunities to showcase their work while creating new sources of revenue for themselves and KABN."
Liquid Avatar is developing custom icons for online groups, events and conferences to create incentives for participation. Liquid Avatar also has other gamification features like badges to create recognition and rewards for attendance and participation.
See: NCFA Announces Updated Virtual Interactive Programme for FFCON20 DIGITAL, the 6th annual Fintech and Financing Conference
KABN believes that ownership of identity is a basic human right and individuals should be the primary beneficiary of any use of their identity. KABN North America generates revenue by providing users with high value services and delivering permission-based offers that fit their aggregated public data profiles through KABN KASH and the KABN Visa Card. KABN never rents, sells or provides data to outside parties without permission and complies with jurisdictional privacy rules and regulations.
Over the coming weeks, KABN will begin its rollout of products and programs, initially on an invitation-only basis to its customers, social media, gaming and its network partners.
KABN North America - Showcase - July 7th and July 8th at 12 pm to 1 pm Eastern
KABN North America will be holding a virtual showcase event to present an overview of its products and offerings on July 7th and 8th from 12 pm to 1 pm Eastern. To register for either of these events, please click on either of the links below:
July 7th - https://aw14bfc0.aweb.page/p/d4e2ce95-8957-4fc7-be5c-3384a511398e
July 8th - https://aw14bfc0.aweb.page/p/b82604b4-cc9e-4e7a-86ba-ebcec20ab856
About KABN - www.kabnnaholdco.com
KABN Systems NA Holdings Corp. through its wholly owned subsidiary KABN Systems North America Inc. focuses on the verification, management and monetization of digital identity, empowering users to control and benefit from its use of their online identity. KABN Systems NA Holdings Corp. is publicly traded on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the symbol: KABN
For further information, please contact:
Ben Kessler
Chief Executive Officer
647-725-7742 Ext. 700
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Banking Needs 360-Degree View of Customer Journey
The Financial Brand | Jim Marous | Jun 2, 2020
“Identity is the foundation that allows brands to deliver relevant messages, while reducing waste, customer churn and optimizing return on marketing investment,” said Ric Elert, President and chief operating officer at Epsilon. “When brands get identity right, it gives them a fighting chance to not only survive but thrive.”
Why is Identity Resolution Important?
With consumers using multiple channels before they make a purchase, and using multiple devices interchangeably expecting a seamless experience, it has gotten exponentially more difficult to understand the complete customer journey. Identity resolution helps marketers connect the dots across all online and offline touchpoints that each individual customer uses.
See: A new denim collection gives jeans a digital identity
Without such capability, banks and credit unions risk wasting marketing dollars and the ability to measure success across channels. There is also the likelihood that you will over or under communicate with customers at key times of the relationship, creating ill will.
According to a study of just over 200 marketing and consumer data decision makers conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Epsilon, only 40% of financial services companies are confident that their customer ID profiles are both complete and accurate. This means marketing investments are being wasted and that there is a risk of privacy and compliance issues.
Other findings included:
- Only 43% of financial services industry respondents say their brands use their ID resolution programs to measure online and offline marketing performance.
- Only 29% of respondents said that they receive excellent support from identity resolution programs for reducing marketing waste.
- Only 33% said that they receive excellent support for decreasing customer attrition and 42% for helping increase revenue per customer.
“We speak with marketing executives who tend to be too focused on data collection or campaign execution and aren’t thinking about measurement,” said Elert. “Brands that are seeing real results from their people-based advertising are committed to looking at all these areas holistically.
The Building Blocks of ID Resolution
The mission of identity resolution is to connect with customers with a high level of personalization and continuity of voice encouraging meaningful interactions. Or, more simply, to know enough about your customers so that they feel like you know them, understand them and want to help them.
Done well, and your organization benefits from less marketing waste and an improved brand perception.
See: Liquid Avatar Integrates with Disrupted Logic Interactive to Reach 60 Million+ Gamers
According to Epsilon, there are 5 building blocks to a strong identity resolution strategy:
- Recognition. Using data not only available within your internal database, but also looking at behavior and channel usage beyond what consumers do with your brand.
- Reach. The need to reach your customers as real people, not just cookies or devices, to avoid hurting your reputation by messaging them too frequently.
- Accuracy. The importance of identifying customers across all of their devices and browsers, consistently and at scale, for a better customer experience.
- Persistence. Being able to follow the customer as they change along their customer journey with updated data actions both online and offline.
- Privacy. To proceed with confidence, data must be scrubbed of personally identifiable information (PII) before it is used to comply with the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). This step also involves ongoing management of opt-out status.
Identity resolution at scale is best done with a partner you can trust. In addition you need to be able to continuously verify their ability to manage the different building blocks well. The risk of mismanagement goes beyond wasted marketing dollars and a bad customer experience. There are privacy and compliance ramifications.
In fact, Forrester found that many identity resolution programs face challenges. In the firm’s research, just half of financial marketers, at best, said they’re fully capable of fundamental identity resolution capabilities including identifying customers across devices, controlling communications frequency and sequencing, or building a single customer profile using all available customer data points.
Continue to the full article --> here
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Liquid Avatar Integrates with Disrupted Logic Interactive to Reach 60 Million+ Gamers
KABN Sytems North America | Ben Kessler | June 16, 2020
Toronto, Ontario and Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 16, 2020) - KABN Systems NA Holdings Corp. (CSE:KABN) (formerly Torino Power Solutions Inc.) (the "Company" or "KABN" or "KABN North America"), a Canadian Fintech company that specializes in continuous online identity verification, management and monetization, is pleased to announce that it has entered an initial agreement to integrate its Liquid Avatar platform (www.liquidavatar.com) with Disrupted Logic Interactive's ("DLI") ctalyst® platform to enhance the experience of online and eSports gamers.
Founded in 2012 in Vancouver, BC, by a team of seasoned video, gaming, advertising and technology leaders, DLI's ctalyst® platform currently works with over 130 game producers and has an additional 150 developers awaiting invitation to join the network. ctalyst® is a one-stop, self-contained, and full-service platform similar in concept to Google's AdWords, AdSense, and Analytics, but designed just for video games and e-sports. With the 130 game producers, the peak reach has been 60 to 70 million players and manages over 150 unique data points and analytics on opt-in participants. It is anticipated that when the additional 150 game developers are invited into the program, the reach could extend to over 500 million gamers worldwide.
See: NCFA Announces Updated Virtual Interactive Programme for FFCON20 DIGITAL, the 6th annual Fintech and Financing Conference
KABN North America's platform provides, at no cost to consumers, the ability to create a digital identity with the Liquid Avatar platform, verify their identity through KABN ID and create value for the use of their identity through KABN North America's cashback, engagement and loyalty program KABN KASH, as well as the KABN Visa card.
KABN North America generates revenue by providing users with high value services and delivering permission-based offers that fit their aggregated public data profiles. KABN never rents, sells or provides data to outside parties without permission, and complies with jurisdictional privacy rules and regulations.
KABN North America is working with DLI and its game developers to promote Liquid Avatar to US and Canadian gamers through the online game registration and certain game incentives.
"The ability to increase player reach outside of the game and the ability to empower users to control the use of their digital identity is a fundamental reason why we've partnered with Liquid Avatar," said Tom Raycove, CEO of DLI. "KABN's ecosystem presents a tremendous opportunity for DLI and our game developers to create revenue while building increased value for players."
Liquid Avatar - Delivering Reach, Value and Revenue
Game Developers - Liquid Avatar provides developers with the ability to extend their reach and revenue generation with players by having gamers activate Liquid Avatars. Any revenues generated by those gamers in the KABN Network will be shared by KABN, DLI and game developers.
Advertisers - For in-game advertisers, DLI manages over 150 unique data points and, together with Liquid Avatar, can assess if a gamer has more than 1 account, allowing unique advertising to be delivered not just based on individual game play of an individual person and not just the number of accounts, increasing both value for the advertiser and potentially increasing overall revenue in the ecosystem.
Gamers - By signing up in-game for a Liquid Avatar account, the user will have the ability to earn special rewards and value from the game developer. They will also have the ability to potentially create and manage in-game avatars with Liquid Avatar and extend their game personas to the real world. Working with DLI, the data points collected can support both the opportunities in Liquid Avatar and products like KABN KASH to create more personalized offers from merchants and increase the potential revenue generated by KABN North America.
See: A new denim collection gives jeans a digital identity
DLI / catalyst® - The agreement with KABN North America provides opportunities for DLI to increase their ongoing reach with gamers, create value for the ecosystems and generate revenues beyond in-game advertising. Liquid Avatar and KABN will share revenues generated inside the KABN ecosystem for users generated from DLI's referrals.
KABN North America - By working with DLI and other organizations that have large networks of non-verified users, Liquid Avatar can potentially create significant revenue and value for its partners and the KABN Network. This process both increases reach for Liquid Avatar and can potentially reduce customer acquisition costs significantly.
KABN North America Product Suite
KABN North America has 4 primary products that enable users to verify, manage and monetize their digital identity:
- KABN ID: a reusable, Always On, compliant, biometrically based, identity verification and validation platform that forms the engine of the KABN Network.
- LIQUID AVATAR: a digital image-based "wallet and keyring" platform that allows users to manage their digital identity.
- KABN Card: an approved prepaid Visa card that includes a mobile banking wallet that supports both digital and traditional currencies.
- KABN KASH: a robust loyalty and engagement platform with cashback and card-linked programs.
"This agreement with DLI creates an opportunity to reach a significantly large, low acquisition cost and highly scalable market to increase the reach of Liquid Avatar," said Benjamin Kessler, CEO. "KABN's suite of services will provide an ecosystem to empower these users to manage and control their digital identity and to benefit from unique, permission-based offers that will create revenues for KABN, DLI and game developers."
DLI is currently exploring its own private funding program and KABN North America has expressed interest in participating as a lead order, subject to completion of a definitive agreement, review of the offering, and receipt of all necessary approvals.
Over the coming weeks, KABN will begin its rollout of products and programs, initially on an invitation-only basis to its customers, social media, gaming and its network partners.
About DLI - www.disruptedlogic.com
Founded in 2012 in Vancouver, BC, by a team of industry professionals from gaming, advertising, technology and the motion picture industry, Disrupted Logic Interactive currently has 7 employees. Disrupted Logic has developed the ctalyst® technology which is live and in market.
ctalyst® is a one-stop, self-contained, and full-service platform similar in concept to Google's AdWords, AdSense, and Analytics, but designed just for video games and e-sports. ctalyst® ads are a natural, native, and genuine playable and enjoyable part of the video gaming experience. The ctalyst® engine manages over 150 user datapoints and analytics on an opt-in basis.
The platform has 130 participating game producers and an additional 150 developers awaiting invitations with an audience peak reach of approximately 60 to 70 million people. Disrupted Logic expects that when the additional 150 game developers are invited into the program, the platform's reach to the gaming industry could extend to over 500 million users worldwide.
For more information, please visit: www.disruptedlogic.com
About KABN - www.kabnnaholdco.com
KABN Systems NA Holdings Corp. through its wholly owned subsidiary KABN Systems North America Inc. focuses on the verification, management and monetization of digital identity, empowering users to control and benefit from its use of their online identity.
View: source release
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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NBA Top Shot launches in beta with tokenized, collectible highlights
Decrypt | Andrew Hayward | May 27, 2020
First came CryptoKitties, and now Dapper Labs is launching a licensed hoops game with potentially massive mainstream appeal
In brief
- NBA Top Shot, a blockchain-based collectibles game, is lauching in closed beta.
- The licensed game is developed by Dapper Labs, the studio behind CryptoKitties.
- Top Shot features tokenized NBA highlights and also pairs with a mobile hoops game.
CryptoKitties developer Dapper Labs is going big for its latest project: NBA Top Shot, an officially licensed, blockchain-driven collectible game featuring tokenized highlights from basketball’s greatest stars.
See: How the Pandemic Is Pushing Blockchain Forward
It will be available to play next week, at least to those who registered interest and receive an invitation to the soon-to-be-released closed beta test.
“What Top Shot does is it allows fans to buy a piece of the on-court action, actually own it, and then be able to sell it,” Dapper Labs VP of Marketing and Partnerships Caty Tedman told Decrypt. “It creates a new economy around the sport that’s never existed before that we’re particularly excited about.”
The tokenized moments arrive as interactive “snapshots of a moment in time,” explained Tedman. They’re multi-faceted, animated widgets of sorts that include video highlights, official NBA photography, stats provided by league partner SportRadar, and additional context.
Players will buy new tokens in blind packs, where they’ll know the scarcity of the included moments but not the actual moments they’ll receive. Packs can be purchased with a credit card, Bitcoin, or Ethereum, with other coins likely to join the fray; Tedman said that they’re surveying players to see what they’d like to use.
Once onboarded, players can buy, sell, and trade individual moments in the marketplace, complete challenges by amassing certain sets of moments, and create in-game “trophy case” spotlights as desired.
See:
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Winklevoss twins launch a marketplace for blockchain digital art
-
What Attracts Investors to Blockchain Gaming?
The moments can also be used in an upcoming free-to-play mobile game, NBA Top Shot: Hardcourt, which is expected to begin beta testing this summer. Hardcourt can be played without owning the non-fungible tokens (NFTs), but is “made measurably better” by owning them, said Tedman. That’s because the tokens can be equipped in the management-style meta game to improve players’ capabilities.
Going with the Flow
Just last week, Dapper Labs announced that CryptoKitties will ditch the Ethereum blockchain—which it famously crashed when it first exploded in popularity—for Dapper’s own Flow blockchain.
NBA Top Shot will use the very same blockchain, which Tedman suggested helps minimize friction for incoming NBA fans who may not be familiar with blockchain. It can also handle the potentially significant flow of transactions that comes with a larger user base, while hopefully avoiding the growing fees that CryptoKitties players encountered over time.
Going from cartoonish cats to a global sports league like the NBA is a pretty dramatic leap. After CryptoKitties exploded, Tedman said that the team received interest from companies in all sorts of verticals, not to mention celebrities and athletes.
Continue to the full article --> here
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Edtech’s biggest threat? Kids
Sifted | Tim Smith | May 26, 2020
As coronavirus has forced classrooms around the world to move online, kids are getting creative in trying to sabotage lessons
Georgina Farnham, a Barcelona-based English literature and language teacher, was just getting used to the transition to online teaching when, one day, she thought the internet trolls had parked their tanks on her lawn.
Farnham was making use of Kahoot!, the Norwegian educational games app, when the sabotage struck.
“We were playing a game and it kept just crashing and not giving kids time to answer the questions, and on the leader board, all of these ridiculous names that hadn’t been entered into the game as players were coming up: ‘gayboy27’, ‘Covid-19’ — offensive names,” she explains.
See: 58 Must-Read Remote Work Resources | 50 Great Remote Working Resources
The kids said it was nothing to do with them, and Farnham got worried: “I thought someone had hacked into our game and was watching us, and I was worried for our cyber security.”
Farnham quickly contacted the Kahoot! customer service team to find out what was going on. But the culprits, as it turned out, were closer to home than she had guessed.
“They replied saying my kids were behind it!”
Farnham’s enterprising students had found an innovative way to cause virtual classroom trouble: Kahoot! bots.
A quick Google search for Kahoot! bots throws up a number of websites that allow the user to enter a Kahoot! game code, summoning an ever-replenishing army of disruptive bots to the class.
“You’re able to remove the bots one by one, but they just keep coming,” Farnham explains.
Kahoot!’s customer service team informed Farnham of the platform’s “two-step join” tool, which was available before the Covid-19 outbreak began. This allows teachers to add an extra layer of security to their classroom, by generating a second unique code for each game, which invalidates after six seconds.
Since using the two-step join tool, Farnham’s classes have been bot-free.
The new “model of misbehaviour”
It’s no surprise that there have been some onboarding issues with teachers using Kahoot!. Sean D’Arcy, head of ‘Kahoot! at School’, told Sifted that, since the coronavirus lockdown began, the startup has seen sign-up rates climb as high as 100,000 new users per-day.
See: Fintech Ideas for College Students
“We did anticipate a surge in usage and some challenges onboarding so many new users at the same time. In light of that, we increased our customer support staff and other resource materials so our users have a smooth experience with Kahoot!,” says D’Arcy.
“We empathise with educators who are trying to create a positive learning environment, especially when that environment is virtual,” he added. “Giving educators tools to control their remote learning experience, like Kahoot!’s two-step join, is essential. That said, students in the class also have an important role to play by not sharing classroom game details on social media.”
Unfortunately for teachers, school kids have never been well known for their commitment to classroom order and, according to Farnham, the virtual classroom provides ample opportunity for mischief.
“The new model of misbehaviour is that if a kid doesn’t want to learn, it’s now much harder to get them to learn,” she says. “Sometimes they leave the call and pretend they were kicked out, sometimes they pretend the microphone isn’t working when I know it is and they’re just miming and moving their mouth without making sounds.”
NSFW
In some ways Farnham has got off lightly in terms of disruption. Like many teachers, she’s been using Zoom video conferencing software to give classes and, to date, her students are yet to discover “Zoom bombing”.
See: What You Should Know About Online Tools During the COVID-19 Crisis
She’s lucky — Zoom bombers tend to be humans, not bots, and can be a whole lot more disruptive.
One popular hub for organising Zoom bombing is chat community app Discord, where a rogue student will post a meeting code in a server, and invite members to jump into the class, often with unsavoury results.
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The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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A new denim collection gives jeans a digital identity
Vogue Business | Lucy Maguire | May 5, 2020
Upscale upcycling brand The R Collective has partnered with Levi’s on a new iteration of traceable fashion.
Key takeaways:
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The R Collective has produced a fully traceable denim collection in collaboration with Levi’s, designed to reduce the end-to-end carbon footprint of garments.
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Companies like LVMH and Ralph Lauren use digital ID technology to trace their supply chains; the Denim Reimagined project goes further, using ID labels to educate consumers about sustainable product care after purchase.
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The Covid-19 pandemic, which has highlighted the need to digitally engage consumers and communicate with them, is accelerating the adoption of digital innovations like the one championed by The R Collective.
The Denim Reimagined project, created by Hong Kong upcycled apparel company The R Collective and supported by Levi’s, aims to take traceable fashion to a new level going beyond supply chain traceability.
See: NCFA and KABN Systems North America enter multi-year exclusive partnership to promote Digital Identity in Canada
The nine-piece denim collection is accompanied by scannable garment labels that offer four digital “experiences” to customers, including supply chain information, less energy-intensive washing and drying tips, restyling tips to prolong the life of the clothes as well as advice on recycling the garment at the end of its life.
The information stored in the label’s QR code is produced by digital ID label makers Avery Dennison and Internet of Things platform Evrythng and can be scanned with a smartphone. The capsule collection
is now available for pre-order on The R Collective site and in the Levi’s store in Hong Kong mall K11 Musea from 11 May. The garments are also upcycled, constructed using Levi’s aged inventory to demonstrate a use for denim waste.
“Creating a digital engagement and a digital trigger on a garment is one way that we’re helping to inform consumers,” says Mike Colarossi, vice president of innovation, product line management and sustainability at Avery Dennison.
Denim Reimagined leverages the Internet of Things (IoT) technology to track the relevant garment information and securely pass it on to consumers. In the last two years, luxury brands have also started to employ IoT technology to inform users on product supply chains or to verify the authenticity of goods. LVMH is developing its own digital platform, Aura, to use across brands; Gabriela Hearst and PVH have worked on digital identity projects; and labels from Ralph Lauren to 1017 Alyx 9sm have partnered with Avery Dennison and Evrythng on digital supply chain tracking.
Denim Reimagined’s point of difference is that, beyond upcycling materials and tracking sourcing, it includes multiple phases of the garment’s life, including customer care and after life.
Continue to the full article --> here
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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