Marek Olsewski, co-founder of Celo, talks on the past and the future of stablecoins including what key features will be important in the future. This talk was given at the DeFi Summit May 2, 2020 by Marek Olszweski.

1. May 2020
Marek Olszewski | @marekolszewski
celo.org | @CeloOrg
Future of
Stablecoins

2. Before we look forward,
let’s look where we’ve
come from

3. Satoshi’s vision for bitcoin was about
payments, not store of value
Double digit mentions of payment,
cash, merchant, etc
Zero mentions of “store of value”

5. Most stablecoins are
fiat-backed

8. Growing evidence
that decentralized
stablecoins can
work

10. Lots of innovation still possible!

11. Lots of innovation still possible!
● Matching supply to demand

12. Lots of innovation still possible!
● Matching supply to demand
● Moving away from auctions

13. Lots of innovation still possible!
● Matching supply to demand
● Moving away from auctions
● Better gas estimation on networks

14. We have stability, are we
ready for Satoshi’s vision?
✓

15. We have stability, are we
ready for Satoshi’s vision?
Unfortunately, stablecoins
are still used primarily for
arbitraging exchanges and
because of their safe haven
appeal.
✓

16. How do we get there?

17. Need for electronic
payments more than
ever

18. US Digital Dollar
Proposal

19. Cash transfers
shown to help
recipients in
times of need

20. World Bank
suggests sending
via mobile phones

21. Argent Celo Wallet

23. What else is ahead?

24. Local and Regional
Currencies

25. Negative Interest

26. Mayor introduced scrip currency in
1932

27. - Notes have fixed lifespan (e.g. 1
year)
- With space for stamps
- Stamps worth small fraction of
the note have to be affixed
periodically

28. - 1% inflation per month
- The Wörgl currency was by all
accounts a huge success
- 29 roads paved, bridges built, back
taxes paid

29. - Not perfect though
- Hoarding of cash is becoming
more and more common since
these places don’t use scrip
currencies

30. Natural-capital
backed currencies

31. Thank you for your time.

32. Stay connected
chat.celo.org
news.celo.org

33. Lightweight identity protocol that
maps hashes of phone numbers to
public keys—making it easy for
anyone with a mobile phone to send
and receive digital currencies
Native support for multiple
ERC20-like stable currencies, and
option to pay gas using these
currencies, enabling a simplified user
experience
Block headers optimized for fast
mobile phone synchronization,
which makes Celo over 700,000x
lighter than other blockchains
Celo’s Key Technology Innovations

34. Appendix

35. A financial system
that creates the conditions
for prosperity - for everyone.
Celo’s Mission

36. 80+ 100
2.51M
+
300 400
+
+

37. Allows developers to build native
mobile dApps (e.g. DeFi)
Fast, secure, stable
digital payments to any
mobile number at a fraction
of today’s cost
Mobile-First Digital Currencies
Open-source, decentralized
blockchain infrastructure
and core contracts

38. Mobile Wallet
“Whatsapp for money” - all the benefits of blockchain but with a Web 2.0 feel

40. Plumo Light Client

41. Celo Mobile
Wallet

42. Sending
Transactions

43. Sending To
New Users

44. Onboarding