Early bitcoin investor and prominent bitcoin cash (BCH) supporter Roger Ver recently participated in VI Bitconf, a cryptocurrency conference held in São Paulo, Brazil. According to local news outlet Portal do Bitcoin, Ver wasn’t physically there, as he participated while in Tokyo.
Nevertheless, the chief executive officer of controversial website Bitcoin.com used the opportunity to promote Bitcoin Cash as the “real bitcoin” and even offered $100 worth of BCH to the first audience member who scanned a QR code.
Per Portal do Bitcoin, Ver reminded the audience he first learned about bitcoin in 2011, and quickly realized the potential the cryptocurrency had. Since then, he’s been promoting bitcoin until last year, when he started promoting bitcoin cash, a cryptocurrency he claims to be more in line with Satoshi Nakamoto’s original vision.
During the VI Bitconf conference, the entrepreneur defended bitcoin cash as a more efficient payment method than bitcoin, and he argued that BCH will eventually surpass BTC, even as a store of value.
As covered by CCN, this isn’t the first time Ver has argued that bitcoin cash will surpass bitcoin.
Notably, he also addressed Venezuela and its oil-backed cryptocurrency, the petro (PTR). He noted that the Bitcoin Cash community is helping Venezuelans through the Eat BCH charity, and invited audience members to donate to the cause.
When asked about the petro, Ver notably stated:
“I would be very skeptical about anything that comes from governments, even more so from the government of Venezuela.”
As CCN reported, Venezuela has held a token sale to distribute its oil-backed cryptocurrency and claims it will positively impact the country’s economy within “three to six months.” The cryptocurrency was created to bypass US sanctions, and saw president Donald Trump bar US citizens and residents from investing in the cryptocurrency – a move Venezuela claims was free publicity that doubled the number of interested investors.
Some, including Venezuela’s National Assembly, strongly criticize the Petro, with the century-old think tank Brookings Institute even claiming it undermines legitimate cryptocurrencies like bitcoin. Nevertheless, it dubiously received the Satoshi Nakamoto prize in Russia last month.
Taking advantage of his time speaking at VI Bitconf in São Paulo, Ver further claimed that bitcoin cash’s upcoming hard fork is taking the cryptocurrency to the next level, as it will increase its block size to 32 MB, allowing for greater transaction volume and speed. Moreover, he argued it will allow bitcoin cash to “compete with ethereum” when it comes to smart contracts.
