The Satoshi Revolution

Crypto Beats Fiat in Round the World Payments Race

Four contestants are currently racing their way around the globe in a quest to reach Amsterdam first. The Payments Race runs westwards from London, circling the globe before finishing at the Money 2020 event in the Dutch capital today, June 4. In keeping with its theme, each contestant must use a different payment method throughout their journey. Alex Hobern has selected cryptocurrency as his sole means of sustenance and survival on the winner-takes-all journey.

Round the World Payments Race Showcases the Future of Money

Cash, card, mobile and crypto are the four payment methods available for the Round the World Payments Race, with one assigned to each racer. Northern Ireland, Hong Kong and Lithuania are among the checkpoints to be visited during the course of the westward circumnavigation.

Crypto candidate Alex Hobern

is accustomed to drumming up publicity in his role as a social media creator and TV personality, but he’s a confessed newb when it comes to cryptocurrency. As such, his journey is one of self-discovery as much as it is global conquest. The rules of the challenge mandate that he can’t use crypto surrogates such as cryptocurrency debit cards or BATMs: Hobern is only permitted to spend crypto in its purest P2P form.

The Challenges of Living on Cryptocurrency

When asked by news.Bitcoin.com why he had selected cryptocurrency from the available options, Hobern explained: “In my view, it poses the biggest challenge. With a large and dedicated community, its adoption by merchants is extremely low. Being someone who thrives out of their comfort zone, I decided it was the best way to make the trip an actual challenge.” He confesses to having known “absolutely nothing” about cryptocurrency prior to the race save for a few tales from mates who got rich during the market mania of 2017. To help him out, London-based cryptocurrency payment service Wirex gave him a crash course on everything he should know before setting out.