Epicenter Bitcoin Ep 47, College Crypto: “We Don’t Have to Deal With Banks Anymore”

"Young people are so integrated with the Internet [...] to introduce a currency that exists only online really makes sense for young people like us."

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EB47: Jacob Sears & Dean Masley

The latest episode on Epicenter Bitcoin were Jacob Sears, Director of Student Outreach and Dean Masley, Creative Director of the College Cryptocurrency Network who shared their experience in helping students create bitcoin clubs at their schools.

The College Cryptocurrency Network is a non-profit organization whose objective is to help encourage education, innovation and advocacy of blockchain technologies, primarily on college campuses. The CCN provides students with a wealth of resources and support to help them create Bitcoin clubs, which includes documentation, literature, promotional materials as well as a network of professionals and companies who can sponsor and provide financial support to individual clubs.

Currently, there are over 115 independent chapters around the globe with new clubs being created each week. This is a notable achievement considering the CCN was founded just over 6 months ago when founder Jeremy Gardner started his own club at the University of Michigan and reached out to other clubs at Stanford and MIT.

The idea of money that is not controlled by banks is generally well received by students who feel disenfranchised by a financial system that takes advantage of them with near-predatory practices when it comes to student loans. Jacob Sears remarks:

"[For students] working with banks is always a hassle, so you show them this and they say 'Hey! This is a cool alternative, we don't have to deal with the banks anymore.'"

"When you show how it works, a lot of them just get it" says Dean Masley. "Our generation uses video chat and social networking to talk to friends around the world. Money should follow that same motive, and that is much more familiar than what our policies and governments are doing right now."

There seems to be a growing number of young people who feel their governments don't represent their interests. The 2008 financial crisis may have struck a tone with students and made them more aware of how the financial system works and how little has been done to prevent those events from happening again. Students today may also have the sentiment their career outlooks are not as good as those of their parents at their age.

In addition, people who have grown up with the Internet and the ability to communicate with people worldwide, practically at the speed of thought, are much more empathetic to their peers, regardless of the national borders that separate them.

"I'm more connected with the kids in Hong Kong and the Arab Spring, and what they are doing, than what my government is doing," says Masley speaking about the paradigm shift happening among young people.

"Our generation is much more independent because of the tools we have now. It's amazing!"