The Big Whale: You're in Paris for X-Day, an event you organised. What is the aim of this big gathering?
Beniamin Mincu: There are several aims! Firstly, to meet the community and the people behind projects on Erlond. It's also an opportunity to make announcements. We've been working hard over the last few months on our vision and long-term strategy for Elrond.
What is that strategy?
We're going to be launching new products and services with a much stronger on Web3 and metavers.
Is that why the boss of Yuga Labs (Bored Ape) is attending the event?
We're in contact with a lot of players in this ecosystem and Yuga Labs is one of them. More broadly, I think that metavers is an unmissable opportunity and that there is a huge amount to be done.
The current vision of metavers is very unambitious. Our belief is that we need to get users and businesses on board, and that we will need everyone, hence the presence of Yuga Labs and other players in the sector such as Improbable or Second Life.
Can Elrond be the blockchain for metavers?
Without blockchain, there is no metaverse. That's an essential point. After that, once we've said that, we need to look at what metavers need. To create a satisfactory experience, they need to process a huge amount of data very quickly. So they need a blockchain that is fast and capable of scaling. From this point of view, Elrond is very well positioned.
What is the difference between Elrond and other blockchains such as Avalanche or Solana?
Our main strength is that we have a clear vision. Our goal is to bring a billion people into Web3 and the metaverse. We're working towards this goal with high standards in terms of user experience. People won't switch over if things aren't simple.
What do you say to those who explain that there are very few use cases on Elrond?
I don't share this point of view and the many projects being developed on Elrond are the best example of this. But more generally, you have to bear in mind that we're only at the beginning of the crypto industry. We haven't even seen 1% of blockchain's potential yet.
We're seeing the same debates today as we did 20 years ago with the internet, which was heavily criticised at the time. A lot of people wondered what it was for until there were applications and billions of people were using Web2 on a daily basis.
Why is decentralised finance so underdeveloped on Elrond?
I wouldn't say that. DeFi is still fairly underdeveloped overall and the most advanced projects pay very little attention to users, the sustainability of the model... This is precisely what we are trying to solve with Maiar by gradually developing services.
Speaking of services. When do you plan to launch an Elrond payment card?
That's a good question (laughs). It's also linked to what we're doing with DeFi. The aim is to have a global financial offering with good performance and a good user experience. But that's coming soon.
In contrast to some competitors, there are few venture capital funds in Elrond. Why is that?
There are funds in the Erlond ecosystem. Not necessarily many yet, but they are coming. We have around ten of them, particularly European and American, who are waiting for the right moment to take action.
You mentioned the metaverse. What is your main objective over the coming months and years?
To bring that extra billion people into Web3. And to do that, we'll need everyone to co-operate: governments, banks, institutions...
Elrond is particularly popular in France. How do you explain this?
Elrond is one of the most ambitious projects in Europe and France is one of the most dynamic countries , so it's quite normal. We work with a lot of players in France who have always impressed us with their creativity.
Influencer Hasheur is undoubtedly your best ambassador. What do you think of him? Don't you also need influencers in English-speaking countries?
We're taking things one step at a time. Things will happen in other countries in due course. For the time being, we want to continue to develop in a few markets where we are strong, such as France. It's no coincidence that our first big event is taking place in Paris.
Are you going to set up offices in Paris like other giants in the sector?
Yes, we're in the process of looking into opening offices in France. We have very good relations with the authorities. I've met the Minister for Digital Affairs, Jean-Noël Barrot, several times. He will be at our conference. It's not often you get a minister!
