It may be known as the city that never sleeps – but New York City wants to also be known as a blockchain pioneer.
James Patchett, CEO and president of the New York City Economic Development Corp. (NYCEDC), told attendees at the CoinDesk Consensus conference that the city will be launching a resource centre and a public competition to ‘build a foundation around the technology and position New York City as an accessible centre for blockchain innovation’, as NYCEDC put it.
The NYC Blockchain Resource Center will essentially be a think tank, convening industry players, government officials, investors and consumer advocates, and ‘serve as a physical hub for the industry.’ The city released a request for proposals to launch its public blockchain competition, which will be run along the same lines as BigApps, a yearly contest for New York’s tech community.
“There’s no city in the world that’s better positioned to lead the way in blockchain,” said Patchett in a statement. “We’re a global leader in finance, real estate, media and tech – all industries seeing incredible innovation from this new technology.“The city is putting a big focus into blockchain to find out how we can grow the industry and make sure it’s creating great opportunities for New Yorkers,” Patchett added.
Julie Samuels, executive director of Tech:NYC, a non-profit organisation representing New York technology companies, added: “The blockchain industry is booming in New York, and with these new initiatives, the NYCEDC is seizing on its potential to revolutionise the way we do business and create new jobs in the process.
“Blockchain technology promises to have real impact on all kinds of businesses and sectors, and it’s key that all stakeholders – government, entrepreneurs, technologists, and existing industries – work together to get it right,” said Samuels.
The announcement is part of the city’s first Blockchain Week, put together alongside New York-based CoinDesk.
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