Bessie Liu

<div id="highlights-block_62a354b1c8f4d" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>Companies with a woman in the founding team made up only 17.7% of venture-backed Blockchain startups</li>
 <li>Women make up only 26% of cryptoasset investors</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



There is a gender diversity problem in the crypto space. <a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5a7f13828a02c7e2df8e6c68/t/5e00f58ccf118b46b6fbd32c/1577121230490/The+State+of+Diversity+and+Inclusion+in+Blockchain.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Studies</a> have shown that between 2012 and 2018, teams with a woman among the founders made up only 17.7% of venture-backed crypto and Blockchain companies. This number dropped to 8.2% when looking at all-women founding teams.



Women are also less likely than men to invest in cryptocurrencies. Gemini’s <a href="https://www.gemini.com/gemini-2021-state-of-crypto-us.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">2021 State of US Crypto report</a> shows that women make up only 26% of the investors in the space.&nbsp;



“Women tend to be more cautious when it comes to investing,” Jaclyn Strul, the chief financial officer at Xchange Monster, told Blockworks. “I like to understand risk and the technology behind things and in such a volatile industry and market, that critical thinking ensures that I make the right decisions and investments at the right time.”



The crypto space was also born from two traditionally very male-dominated industries: finance and technology. A 2021 <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/financial-services/our-insights/closing-the-gender-and-race-gaps-in-north-american-financial-services" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">McKinsey study</a> showed that 64% of financial services C-suite executives are white men, and 23% of them are white women. The gap is significant also in the technology space, with data showing that only <a href="https://dataprot.net/statistics/women-in-tech-statistics/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">24%</a> of computing jobs are held by women.&nbsp;



This gap has been present for decades, Strul said. “PC usage in the ‘80s was definitely male-dominated for the first ten years before women became comfortable and again, the internet in the early ‘90s was also male-dominated until the 2000s before women began using the internet.”



<h3>Moving forward</h3>



Not long ago, women were <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/money/us-money-blog/2014/aug/11/women-rights-money-timeline-history" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">legally prevented</a> from managing their own finances; it wasn’t until the mid-1970s in the US that women first gained the right to open a bank account.&nbsp;



Although we are slowly making progress towards gender equality, that goal <a href="https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/compensation/pages/gender-pay-gap-improvement-slowed-during-the-pandemic.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">remains far off</a>.&nbsp;



“Crypto is a fairly new industry, and it is still highly technical,” Lily Hu, a lead engineer at 57Blocks, told Blockworks. “I think as the industry matures, we will see more women and minorities participating in the space.”



Hu echoed Strul’s opinion on women being more risk-averse than men, stating that “typically men are more exploratory in spirit while women are relatively conservative when it comes to taking big career risks. However, I see that changing as more and more women are becoming leaders in their field.”



She also believed that in addition to being in a space that is constantly changing and adapting, the crypto industry is full of new concepts and ideas different from traditional technology and finance.&nbsp;



“As someone whose background has been in traditional software development for many years, I had to endure a lot of cognitive changes to understand the new [blockchain] concepts,’ Hu said.&nbsp;



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">“You also have to participate in crypto to fully understand it.”</blockquote>



Although the demographics in crypto still skew male today, it needn’t imply that women are not interested in the space. In fact, the same <a href="https://www.gemini.com/gemini-2021-state-of-crypto-us.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Gemini report</a> revealed that 53% of crypto-curious people are women.&nbsp;



For many women interested in learning more about crypto and looking for opportunities to work in the field, Strul suggests to “be confident in your craft.”



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">“You don’t have to be a software engineer to be a woman in tech. There are many opportunities for accountants and even if you’re in marketing. It doesn’t matter what your role is. You just need your own craft, and you need to believe in your abilities.”</blockquote>



The first cryptocurrency, bitcoin, was designed to <a href="https://www.ussc.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/training/annual-national-training-seminar/2018/Emerging_Tech_Bitcoin_Crypto.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">encourage financial equity</a>. It was created so that online payments could be directly sent from one party to another without relying on a financial institution. The modern Web3 movement is meritocratic, optimistic and forward-looking. But as an industry, we should remain vigilant about where we’re falling short.



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Crypto Has a Gender Diversity Problem, Let’s Talk About It

Ornella Hernandez

<div id="highlights-block_6299dd9749ad1" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>The announcement comes on the heels of a visit by Women in Web3 to the emirate</li>
 <li>Abu Dhabi is just one of many cities working with Unstoppable Domains, others to be announced throughout the year</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



Unstoppable Domains, a decentralized domain name provider, is running a giveaway in collaboration with Abu Dhabi firms to ensure each woman residing in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) capital receives a domain name.&nbsp;



The idea came out of a meeting of entrepreneurs from the US-based Women of Web3 organization, Access Abu Dhabi — a program that helps women-led business expand into the UAE — and the Emirati government’s Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO).



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"><a href="https://twitter.com/unstoppableweb?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@unstoppableweb</a> is giving free <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/crypto?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#crypto</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NFT?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NFT</a>, and <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/blockchain?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#blockchain</a> domains to all women in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AbuDhabi?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AbuDhabi</a>! In partnership with Access Abu Dhabi, powered by <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ADIO?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ADIO</a>, the initiative aims to give women in Abu Dhabi the opportunity to enter the world of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Web3?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Web3</a> and be part of shaping the future🌐 <a href="https://t.co/WvLFxcIdAV">pic.twitter.com/WvLFxcIdAV</a>&mdash; Abu Dhabi Investment Office (@InvestAbuDhabi) <a href="https://twitter.com/InvestAbuDhabi/status/1532298549144207361?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 2, 2022</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
</div></figure>



The mission of the initiative, according to Unstoppable Domains&#8217; Senior Vice President Sandy Carter, is to give power back to the people. A “domain in Web3 is actually a domain with superpowers,” she said.



Each Unstoppable Domain web name is an NFT that is minted and sold like any other non-fungible token. While users can usually choose whatever domain they want, if available, the giveaway will allow people to secure their given names. The most popular top level domains are .nft, .crypto and .888 — which is popular in China and among Abu Dhabi’s large Chinese population, Carter said.



Tying a domain name to a singular, portable digital identity, whether from Unstoppable Domains or one from competitors such as Ethereum Name Service (ENS), enables the holder to replace complicated crypto wallet addresses and have more control over their data.&nbsp;



Carter told Blockworks that Unstoppable Domains’ vision is to help cities that are interested in educating their citizens on Web3 to get started. Abu Dhabi was the chosen location to kick-start this initiative that aims to educate its citizens on Web3 and support businesswomen. Other cities will be announced throughout the year, according to the company.



Sarah Omolewu, managing partner of Maven Global Access and founder of Access Abu Dhabi, said in a statement, &#8220;In a market of expats from more than 200 countries, this initiative could potentially impact the lives of generations of women around the world.&#8221;



She added that more and more women are recognizing the value that blockchain technologies have in growing and funding their businesses. But the biggest barrier to entry is making educational opportunities accessible and widespread.&nbsp;



That’s why earlier this year, Carter <a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/unstoppable-women-of-web3-launches-diversity-and-education-initiative-with-10-million-grant-by-unstoppable-domains-301497231.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">founded</a> the networking and training group “Unstoppable Women of Web3,” made up of a coalition of companies including Blockchain.com, Deloitte, Google Cloud, Polygon and Consensys. Unstoppable Domains pledged to distribute over $10 million worth of NFT domains to support women in their Web3 journey. 



Public figures including supermodel Tyra Banks represented America at the Women in Web3 delegation visit from May 24-26 in Abu Dhabi. Kevin O’Leary, &#8220;Shark Tank&#8221; personality and businessman, is an ambassador of Access Abu Dhabi but was not present at the meeting.



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Unstoppable Domains Gifted Blockchain Domain Names to 1M Women in Abu Dhabi

Jacquelyn Melinek

<div id="highlights-block_621f6168d370a" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>About 1 in 4 women already own crypto, the survey found</li>
 <li>Other subsectors in the industry remain largely untapped by women as only 5% have bought an NFT or participated in crypto mining</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



About one-third of women are planning on buying cryptocurrencies this year, according to a new survey conducted by BlockFi. Of those women, 60% said they plan on buying digital assets within the next few months.



That’s more than double the 29% of women who said, in a September 2021 survey, they would purchase within the next year. 



“There’s no better way to learn about something new than by doing — especially when diving into the seemingly complex world of crypto,” Flori Marquez, founder and senior vice president of operations of BlockFi, said in a statement. 



About one in four women already own cryptoassets, and of that group, a majority of them have never sold what they’ve bought.



The findings also showed women are buying bitcoin, dogecoin and ether the most — at 71%, 42% and 18%, respectively. However, other subsectors in this space remain largely untapped by women, as only 5% have bought a non-fungible token (NFT) or participated in crypto mining.



In general, the crypto sector is a heavily male-dominated industry. Out of the 121 leading crypto companies, only five of them, or 4.13%, had female founders, according to <a href="https://cryptohead.com/cryptocurrency-company-index/?msID=5717aa95-8a58-4454-9210-9f72fa4cd4a0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">research</a> by Crypto Head. Of those founders — Marquez being one of them — all the companies also have at least one male founder, too.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/Nu87tROsif4_LwFU8AQdFN_KSrq-YCJdhr-PlI68I_p1_pqovr6rQH9Qm2KIBukFKrNqmxkXoGC_nKT82IWu6ngxoSDvpQjY07_XSKtQvrjtzI_TaWshx_s7MLyDCa3Atp5FdraY" alt=""/><figcaption>Source: Crypto Head</figcaption></figure>



The number of women in the industry is set to grow, though. The BlockFi survey found that 15% of women are interested in working in crypto, but only 10% plan on applying to crypto or blockchain-focused companies within the next year.&nbsp;



“It’s very exciting to know that women are becoming more aware of the benefits of owning crypto and expressing interest in working in the crypto sector,” Marquez said. “Now it’s our responsibility to continue to close the education gap and provide as many on-ramps as possible, so women can easily gain exposure to crypto markets and get comfortable doing more with their crypto.”&nbsp;



The survey was conducted by a third-party survey panel at the end of January and consisted of 1,031 female Americans between the ages of 18 and 65. This is the third edition of its “Real Talk” survey, which is focused on female Americans’ attitudes toward crypto, financial wellness and career aspirations.&nbsp;



&#8220;Crypto is becoming a part of everyday financial wellness, and we must continue to educate new adopters and make financial products that are simple and easy to use,&#8221; Marquez told Blockworks. &#8220;Mass adoption presents a significant opportunity to drive inclusion in the industry.



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